Dreamcatcher
by Lomelindi
Summary: DISCONTINUED. SEQUEL TO COME WHAT MAY Three thousand years ago, a young king died a most tragic death. Strangely enough, he now haunts every living moment of a troubled CEO's life. Tell me why I keep looking at the stars... SetoYami
1. And Time Can Do So Much

DREAMCATCHER 

Authoress: Lomelindi

Summary: (sequel to Come What May) Three thousand years ago, a young king died a most tragic death. Strangely enough, he now haunts every living moment of a troubled CEO's life. "Tell me why I keep looking at the stars..." (Yami/Seto) 

General Disclaimer: I do not own any recognizable plot or character of Yu-Gi-Oh!, Sailor Moon, The Prince of Egypt, The Mummy + The Mummy Returns, Ghost, Moulin Rouge, Disney or whatever other poor thing I got some ideas from. ^_^

Warnings: Yaoi (male x male relationship)

Pairings: YAMI/SETO, SETO/YAMI/SETH (the god), RYOU/BAKURA

MUST-READ NOTES: First off, a big thanks to reviewers and email buddies for supporting Come What May, helping my writer's block and giving me ideas. Luv ya all! *massive hug* Also, thank you all for waiting so patiently. I was hoping the epilogue of CWM might keep you guys busy enough to buy me some time, but I ended up uploading this sooner then planned because apparently many of you are getting desperate. O_o (Moonlitspire, you can stop checking my profile twice a day now ^_^;;)

**IMPORTANT:** I never realized this but it seems very possible that fans of CWM have been very confused about the Seto/Seth thing, so lemme put it in these words: **when I say 'SETH' in CWM and DC, I mean the GOD of chaos, based off ancient Egyptian mythology and having nothing to do with Seto's past life. For my story, High Priest Seto (or 'Seth') keeps the name Seto in both past and present. 'Seto' and 'Seth' are therefore completely separate characters in this story who just happen to be fighting over Yami (read CWM for why :-p). **Hope that explains lots. ^_^ I'm sorry if I didn't make that clear before...

Three, if you haven't read CWM, most likely you might get confused as to some parts and probably won't get the sentimental value of a line, so I highly suggest you read CWM anyway. ^_^ Don't forget to drop a review! Thanks!! 

Okay here's my little rant about Yami and Bakura's forms. Yugi and Ryou DON'T CHANGE PHYSICALLY when their yami's take over. The animators of the anime and the artists of the manga ONLY DID THAT TO SHOW WHOSE IN CONTROL. Their bodies or voices don't physically change, which is why in both the show and the manga, everyone (including Kaiba) keeps calling Yami 'Yugi' and Bakura 'Ryou' cuz THEY DON'T SEE A DIFFERENCE. I don't mind if a story has Yami and Yugi transforming between themselves all the time; its just that its sometimes harder to write about them as two distinct beings that way. 

Just so you know, **I have vowed to write shorter chapters and not have so many notes**. Pray that I'll be able to keep that promise. ^_^;;

+++Chapter Disclaimers+++

~The song used in this chapter is _Ghost_ from the 1990 (or so) movie 'Ghost' with Demi Moore. I kinda wrote the lyrics as I heard them, so sorry if they're a bit distracting to read. ^_^;; 'GHOST' DOES NOT BELONG TO ME.

~There's a bit of the Mummy stuck in the first scene of this chapter. You guys figure it out. 'THE MUMMY' DOES NOT BELONG TO ME.

~~~~~~~~~~  
/.../ = mindlink connection (between aibou's and yami's)

'...' = personal thoughts

... = spoken and translated ancient Egyptian

//...// = thought speak (for gods only)

"..." = spoken dialogue (if in English, assumed to be Japanese)

_lots of italics_ = dreams/flashbacks/visions

**bold** = song lyrics

[ ] = footnotes

AN = author's note  
~~~~~~~~~~

~*~*~*~*~*~And Time Can Do So Much~*~*~*~*~*~

**The Valley of the Kings, Egypt**

"What do you mean _melted_?"

"Sir, I mean that--"

"But _how_?" A tight, choked murmur, more to himself. "Bloody hell, _how_?"

"...Pressurized salt acid, sir. From a crack in the wall." 

"_Goddamnit_, that's the four trap they've triggered this week!" A long, shaky exhale. A hand running through hair. "...How... How many did we lose...?"

"Five dead instantly. Seven severely injured; they're being ferried to the Thebes as we speak."

Silence.

"... I don't believe this...!" The man was nearly hysterical, his voice rising octaves. "Never in my _life_ have I ever seen a tomb... so... so... AUGH!" The sound of a fist slamming down on a table. 

"Sir, with all due respect, you _cannot_ keep losing men like this... The native diggers are fearful as it is... They know that--"

"--what they _know_ are some rubbish Arabic fairy tales!!"

Silence.

Harsh breathing.

"So you do not believe the stories, then?" The second voice was soft, almost hurt. "You do not believe that this is the resting place of--?" 

"I believe what I see, and what I _see_ are a bunch of primitive booby traps put in there by religious fanatics eons ago. Now, look, we still have more then enough men to penetrate that tomb. And I don't bloody know where you and that brother of yours came from, but I suggest you kids get away from this place because there's a lot of work to do."

"It is not men that you need, sir..." A small chuckle. "Pegasus had only fifty, and he got much farther then you."

"Pegasus?" An angry growl. "What are you saying? That... That _Pegasus_ had some... some 'secret weapon'?! Then by all means, girl, spit it out for me to use!"__

"Secret weapon?" A melodious laugh. "Sir, you're looking at her."

~*~*~*~*~*~

**Domino, Japan**

Yugi awoke with a jerk, blinking madly, the screams still echoing in his ears. He whimpered, curling up in a tiny ball and clawing at his ears. 'Stop... Stop!'

The shrieks continued, waves upon waves of hysterical voices raised in a language Yugi could not understand, though the terror and grief in their tones did not go unheard. Women, children, men, the young, and the old... It sounded like they were being butchered alive. 

It was bone chilling.

And worst of all, this wasn't the first time Yugi had heard these cries. No, no, far from it... They came fairly often, though the hikari was just as scared of them now as he was back when he first heard them. In fact, they terrified him beyond belief.

Dazed with sleep and panic, Yugi fumbled blindly for the Puzzle beside him on his pillow, accidentally tumbling off his bed with the Item clutched tightly in his fingers. 'Yami...!' he sobbed, 'Make it stop! YAMI!'

The next second was a blur. There was a brief shift in the plane of consciousness, and for a moment there was the dizzying sensation of flying through a bright room, then across a neutral white hall, and finally into a chamber filled with shadow, darkness, and the ghostly murmuring of a language long gone. The screams came again, stronger now, and seemingly from everywhere; above, below, the sides, the corners and worst of all, seemingly right against your ear. 

But in an instant, Yugi found himself, once again, on the floor of his bedroom, laying in a mass of spilled Duel Monsters cards and entangled white sheets. His chest ached with a dull sting and his head throbbed painfully, whether it be from the fall or otherwise, he didn't know. It took him a few minutes to collect himself, mind spinning and fogged with the remnants of sleep.

"Owww...." Pouting, he rubbed his head as he carefully sat up, checking himself for internal damage.

/Are you alright?/

The mental voice, lush and smooth, was quite familiar, though in his stage of confusion Yugi almost didn't recognize it. He jumped, clutching his sheets to himself and peering out from behind them with wide, frightened purple eyes.

Through the darkness, there was a boy sitting calmly on the windowsill, bathing in silvery moonlight. He was noy a normal-looking boy, even less so since his body --almost transparent-- left no visible shadow upon the carpet. Judging by his hazy outline, the boy was a bit on the short side, delicately built with elegant limbs tanned an exotic golden-bronze and adorned with a copy of Yugi's loose, snow-white PJ's. The boy's wild, vivid hair jutted out in spikes of scarlet, gold and ebony, framing a strikingly handsome face and a pair of beautiful eyes the color of soft flames.

It was these same eyes that sparkled in the moonlight, ageless and sad as they peered out curiously into the world beyond the window. And it was these same eyes that slowly turned toward Yugi, sharp, piercing and unwavering.

/Are you alright, aibou?/ the being asked again, slower this time, a soft look in his hawk-like eyes reserved only for his precious hikari.

Yugi swallowed, wincing as his dry throat protested in reply. /I... think so.../ he lied shakily, keeping his voice silent in fear of waking his grandfather.

There was a small, pregnant pause, the taller of the two gazing placidly down at the smaller. Then, ducking his chin, Yami turned away, redirecting his gaze back at the waning moon. Shame rolled off him in waves, though he tried to filter it. /I'm sorry that I woke you.../ he replied softly, his voice rather choked.

Yugi tensed again. /Are... A-Are you alright, Yami?/ he asked shakily, dodging the comment, worry quickly overwhelming his own pain.

Yami had a good heart and a brilliant mind, but three thousand years of darkness had not been kind on what had once been a gentle human soul. Sometimes Yugi awoke to the sound of sobbing in his yami's soul room and often spent the rest of the night comforting the spirit from fears neither one of them could fight. Or, like now, he awoke hearing sounds that were not there, or to images that only his yami could see. Like all spirits, Yami did not sleep, nor did he truly dream. Yugi once asked him what he did while everyone else was sleeping, and Yami merely replied that it was one hell of a boring waste of time. 

That was a lie. 

Every night, Yugi knew Yami fought a fight, a fight to simply exist and escape insanity. A fight against the fear, hate, and confusion that had built up over the course of the millennia, always threatening to claim the one it haunts. Yami would win, of course, but it was still a struggle, and often he would spend the whole day resting just to fight again the following night. 

It was torment, Yugi knew, to live without living, to speak without speaking, to move without touching... but most of all, to exist without remembering. He doubted he could even imagine how painful it was. One's knowledge, skills, and opinions were all based off memories, but what if you woke up from millennia of sleep only to realize that you have none? What if you don't remember the parents that raised you, or the people that loved you, or the home that was all you ever knew? What if you woke up and found out that everyone you knew and the world you loved had been gone for thousands of years? What if you woke up from an eternity of sleep only to be greeted by strangers wearing even stranger clothing and speaking a language that was not yours? What if you start to cry only to realize that you can't produce tears?

It hurt Yami.

And it hurt Yugi. It hurt the boy to know that there was nothing he could do, nothing he could help with, nothing he could do to ease the pain... Oh, but it was so pitiful, seeing the proud King of Game often reduced to a sobbing, frightened child that so desperately needed the comfort he could not have.

No one else saw Yami like this. No one saw him when he was most vulnerable, when he was weakest. No one saw him as the soul of a child who was sick of saving the world and playing hero. No one would even believe that the all-powerful Pharaoh could weep hysterically upon the shoulder of his hikari. The image was ridiculous, at least to the outside world. 

Then again, no one saw Yami anyway. 

But Yugi did. He was the only one that could.

Thankfully, this night, Yami was not in the mist of a nervous breakdown. In fact, he seemed hardly effected by the fading echoes of the screams, gazing passively out the window with a blank, solemn look upon his face.

Yugi bit his lip. Perhaps his yami did not hear him. The spirit often didn't when in one of his brooding moods. /Yami, are you--?/

Yami turned on him then, his eyes sad and sparkling an eerie, glowing crimson against the silver of the moonlight. /I'm fine, Yugi. You needn't worry./ he whispered quietly, his unmoving lips curving upward in a pitiful attempt to smile. /Go to sleep, little one... You need your rest./

Yugi furrowed his eyebrows, pouting and contemplating for a moment. Despite his worry, he knew his yami was stubborn as a mule sometimes, and right now going back to bed sounded very tempting. The boy all but scrambled back on his mattress and was out like a light, but not before he felt the airy brush of ghost fingers upon his cheek and a tender pair of nonexistent lips upon his brow.

~*~*~*~*~*~

**~~~DREAM~~~**

Every night... 

Every single, goddamn night he was here. Here, standing in this strange chamber that was not his own, speaking words of in a tongue long gone, wearing clothing that had apparently long gone out of fashion.

And yet... and yet he loved it all... He loved every single moment of it. He loved to gaze upon the exotic engravings the surrounded him, to smell the fragrant blossoms that grew around the pillars, and to marvel at the silk-draped furniture that seemed to have been stolen straight from heaven.

But most of all, he loved him. That beautiful boy that visited him every night... That same beautiful boy that had --though not without considerable effort-- captured his attention, his fascination and, last but not least, perhaps his heart.

Yes, his heart, of all things.

He knew it was dangerous. He knew it was silly and, by all means, stupid to have such a weakness. He knew that he should not have gotten so attached, that he normally didn't get so attached... But still, try as he might --and he did try -- he was powerless against this angel, this strange boy who could, with just one simple caress, reduce him to mush. He doubted even the coldest of the cold-hearted could no resist the charming angel's trap.

**Oh... my love... my darling...!!  
I've hungered for your touch...  
Alone... lonely times...**

**And time... goes by... so slowly...  
and time can do so much...  
Are you still mine...?**

Every night, they would meet here, two lonely companions who sought comfort from each other. One, an ageless wanderer of a nonexistent world, the other a young man haunted by work, obsessions and a past he no longer wishes to remember. They were two forbidden sweethearts, perhaps, doomed to meet only in sleep.

But meet they did... Yes, meet they always did...

It was like a drug, this boy... He needed him, and he needed him desperately. Another reason why, for so long, he had feared to get close to this boy, to let himself become dependant, to touch him lest the illusion shatter. But in his dreams, the boy stayed as long as he slept, welcoming him with a sweet smile and open arms.

Pausing just long enough to realize where he was, the man glided through the misty chamber, running on memory and instinct. Without looking, he lifted his feet to climb a short flight of stairs, then eagerly parted the waterfall of silk he found at the top. 

He felt his breath die in his throat.

There, on a white platform surrounded by even more white, was the boy. And such a beautiful being he was, slender and bronze-skinned, long limbs draped with layer upon layer of snowy white, a gold belt and collar plate wrapped upon his slight body. He sat upon the railing gazing away into the white world around him, his elegant neck tall and proud, his delicate ankles held together and his slim hands folded neatly in his lap.

When he realized he was not alone, the boy turned, revealing a flawless face with a mop of vibrant hair and sparkling scarlet eyes. His rosy cheeks colored slightly, his flame-colored eyes lighting up like a beacon as he greeted the newcomer with a shy smile.

Kaiba found himself smiling back, gazing upon this slender angel in awe. He saw the boy every night, and yet the youth never ceased to take his breath away.

The boy slipped off the railing and glided forward, chin high and regal. His eyes softened as they gazed upward at the man, who towered a great deal over him. Bashfully, slender digits raised to brush gently across Kaiba's cheek, tracing his thin, pale lips. Large eyes shimmered with affection, awe, and something akin to worry. After much practice, Kaiba found that he could read those eyes quite well. They looked delighted to see him, but were curious if the feeling was returned.

"How could you doubt me, sweet angel...?" he whispered fiercely, cradling the boy's small hand in his larger own, turning his face slightly to kiss the inside of that smooth palm. 

Passion flashed in the boy's bright eyes. 

**I need your love!  
I... need your love...  
God speed your love... to me!**

**Lonely rivers flow to the sea... to the sea...  
To the open arms...of the sea!**

**Lonely rivers sigh... Wait for me... Wait for me...!  
I'll be coming home...  
Wait for me...!**

The youth cuddled against Kaiba's chest, purring faintly like a content kitten.

Kaiba's pulse raced, and without another thought his arms came up on their own accord and wrapped possessively around his small companion, pulling them together like only long lost lovers could fit. "I missed you..." he whispered, voice choked as he inhaled the sweet scent of his beloved's hair.

If anything happened to this small boy... Good heavens, he didn't want to think about it. It was too painful to imagine...

The youth looked up, face flushed with adoration, eyes teary. I missed you too, those eyes said.

The temptation was too powerful, and Kaiba's lips descended, capturing the others' in a tender, sweet kiss, arms tightening around the boy's delicate waist. The beauty in his arms melted against him, shyly tracing his jaw with slender digits, purring into the taller boy's mouth.

It was like heaven.

**Oh... My love... My darling...!!   
I've hungered... Hungered for your touch...  
Alone.. Lonely times...**

**And time goes by... so slowly...  
And time can do so much...  
Are you... still mine?**

**I need your love!  
I... need your love...  
God speed your love... to me!**

**~~~END DREAM~~~**

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kaiba awoke slowly, painfully peeking at the dark expanse that was his ceiling. "Unnngghhh..." Groaning painfully, he raised his hands to scrub his face, daring himself to look at the time. It took a while for his eyes to focus, but gradually big, neon-red numbers made themselves visible through the dark.

Four-thirty in the morning. 

As he suspected, the sun wasn't even up. Kaiba sighed. He felt like crap. Actually, he felt worse, but there didn't seem to be a word to describe it that far.

Mind swimming in dizzying circles, the CEO took a few frantic breaths, lacking the strength to properly move. Unconsciously, a hand drifted toward his lips, as if searching for the other pair that had been pressed upon them.

'No...'

The boy's face was disappearing. Kaiba had seen it as clear as blazing neon the second he awoke, but in his distraction he hadn't notice that it was now nothing but a blur in his mind. And now even that blur was slipping from his memory like sand between his fingers. 

'NO!' The CEO sat upright, fighting nausea, eyes shut tight and hands pressed firmly against his temples, _willing_ himself to remember. 'No, don't you leave me...!' he cried inwardly, heart tearing at the thought. 

The boy smiled sadly at him, now nothing but a faint impression of a pretty face. 

"No..." whispered Kaiba, voice dry and cracking with emotion. Cold sweat dripped down his thin frame, and a diamond of a tear made itself present against the corner of his eyes, though in the dark it went unnoticed. "No... Come back...!" A constricting sob rose in his throat, reaching out with blind fingers. "_Don't leave me_..."

The boy's eyes twinkled... and then he was gone.

Like always.

Just like always...

Every night he met the boy, and every night Kaiba awoke not knowing what the youth looked like nor what he wore. But the heavens be damned, he tried. Lord, he tried _so hard_ to remember... but the only thing he ended up recalling was the tiny body that he had so delicately cradled in his arms.

So every night, he woke up alone in his bed. Every night, there was no one beside him. And every night, there was no lover in his arms.

Kaiba pulled his long legs up to him, hugging them tightly like a frightened child. He took a shuddering breath, then another. Then he put his head against his knees and did something he had not done for many years.

He cried.

~*~*~*~*~*~

AN: Wow. That was rather short... and strange, if I do say so myself. O_o AUGH WHY AREN'T THE ITALICS COMING OUT RIGHT?!?! Okay, I'm typing this as I'm uploading (once again) and I'm very very sorry if the italics STILL don't come out. I think its ff.net. **-_-;; **Um, sorry if Seto and Yami are OCC and if Seto seems even more of a wimp then in CWM. I'm trying to change that image by making him more like the 'ice-cube' (as I now so affectionally call him) we all know, but for this first chapter I'm uh... trying to show his pain. *wince* Did it come out okay? And I'm praying that Seto's dream would work out cuz the rest of the story is kinda based off it. O_o *twitch twitch* **A BIG HUGE THANKS TO ALL THAT HELPED ME WITH THE DREAM**. They helped me SO much, and the frightening thing was that I had very similar ideas when I brainstormed but could never organize them until you guys gave me that push. (Actually, when I was brainstorming, I was going for the Sailor Moon type dreams, so don't freak if some dreams seems familiar to any SM fans. :-p) I swear, I will try to use as many of the suggestions as possible, though they vary greatly and are quite... uh... difficult to link. ^_^;; In case you want to know, Seto's dreams are going to be evolving over time (I think anyway; they're still a really big mess for me. ^_^;;) Hopefully that way I can include a lot of people's ideas, cuz some want a nightmare-ish scene while others want a memory-relapse while still others want yami as a silent angel. Obviously, I can't use ALL your ideas and I apologize in advance, but let it be known that I appreciate and love the effort. Thank you! *sniffle* 

Okay, two notes that I felt like writing out cuz it would ruin the moment if I have a [ ] in the story. One; I know the whole KV 88 thing in the beginning of this chapter was strange and didn't match the manga/CWM epilogue, but lets assume that there's more then one way to get into Yami's tomb. Ishizu's family must have had their own little branch of it, and there's probably a second entrance that is being used in this scene, not the one that Sugoroku used (which was probably blocked by the spikes anyway). Two; my theory is that a spirit is a spirit; therefore a yami is a dark (if not immensely older) mirror image of the hikari. Therefore, Yami wears Yugi's PJ's cuz that's wut Yugi was wearing as of the moment; when Yugi wears black leather, Yami wears the same thing. This only applies for the yami's spiritual forms though. :-p You'll see when there's a big change. ^_^

NEXT UPDATE: something having to do with Ishizu and an ancient love poem (fairly short chapter, hopefully updated within the week) 

**I will hurt you if you don't review.** In fact, I have a GREAT and bloody LONG Seto/Yami story to suggest, but I won't tell you until I see how well this chapter does. O:-p Is this story up to your expectations from CWM? ^_^;; I'm sorry if its not... Its only an intro chapter, so don't flame me... *runs away* Suggestions are always welcome! Especially for tricky things like the dreams! And any particularly fluffy moment you wanna see is SO needed. 


	2. Love's Pretence

AAAAAAIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEE!!! I am VERY upset over the last chapter because the dream passage was supposed to be ITALICIZED, but obvious didn't come out. In desperation I uploaded again and put the ~~~Dream~~~ thing in there but I think it was too distracting to read and ruined the moment. I am now hoping that ff.net will reply to my complaints. *growl* 

Oh yeah, kinda forgot to mention two things. One, Ishizu keeps the Millennium Necklace in this story and returned to Domino City, though Marik/Malik goes back to Egypt. Two, I use 'Kaiba' in references to Seto Kaiba because a, I used that name a lot in CWM and b, when Seth comes in it'll be too confusing to have 'Seth' and 'Seth' in one paragraph, let along being typed. O_o

Wheeee! Me luv reviews! Thank you so much, guys! Made my day. :-p No, there are no triangles except for a very lopsided one with Seth/Yami/Seto (and I don't support any Yugi/Seto-ness, so don't worry). And no, Yugi really isn't THAT important in this story except to provide moral support. I've always been a big sucker for brotherly/friendshippy stuff between him and Yami, as u can tell in the previous chapter. ^_^ I used to like Yami/Yugi pairings, but now I just prefer them to be really close buddies, like brothers. Plus its not fun when there's no counterbalance for Yami's ranting and raving. :-p Big thanks to Yummy Yami for her wonderful Seto/Yami websites that SERIOUSLY made my life bliss. ^_^ Heh, glad everyone liked the story so far. Hopefully I can... uh... keep it up. ^_^;; Just warning you; **this chapter's crappy as anything.** -_-;;

+++Chapter Disclaimers+++

~I do not own this wonderfully sweet poem you'll read later in the chapter; in fact, I don't think there's anyone old enough to own it anyway. O_o

~~~~~~~~~~  
/.../ = mindlink connection (between aibou's and yami's)

'...' = personal thoughts

... = translated ancient Egyptian (I THINK anyway; if this doesn't show up on ff.net, then I'll have to change it...)

//...// = thought speak (for gods only, assumed to be ancient Egyptian though understandable to all)

"..." = spoken dialogue (if in English, assumed to be Japanese)

_lots of italics_ = dreams/flashbacks/visions

**bold** = song lyrics

[ ] = footnotes

AN = author's note  
~~~~~~~~~~

~*~*~*~*~*~Love's Pretence~*~*~*~*~*~

"Big brother, you look like hell."

Kaiba shot Mokuba a glare. "Language, Mokuba, language."

Mokuba rolled his eyes, stuffing more toast in his mouth. "As if I don't learn enough from you," he mumbled into his food, batting his eyes innocently at his elder brother.

Kaiba grunted something rather unintelligent and stumbled to the nearest bathroom, glaring at himself in the mirror. His skin was moist and abnormally pale, somewhat of an unhealthy sickle color that reminded him of unripe grapes. He eyed the bags under his eyes with a frown, poking at them lightly; he got them enough, mind you, but this time they seem worse then normal. With a long tortured sigh, he grabbed a comb and proceeded to battle the tangles that took home in his hair, cursing as he went. That finished --though not an easy battle-- he rubbed the soreness out of his eyes and splashed water on his face, hissing as the chill of it touched his skin. For a moment he paused there, hunched over the sink, fixing the white marble with an accusing stare.

He hated the world.

A few moments and deep breaths later, a man much resembling the normal Seto Kaiba stepped out victoriously from the bathroom, glaring at everything and everyone in general.

Mokuba raised an eyebrow but wisely stayed silent as his brother stalked through the kitchen in a blur of silver PJ's, apparently looking for something edible to eat that didn't require turning on the demon that was the stove.

"Why are you up so early?" came a muffled voice somewhere in the huge fridge, from which came sounds of milk being poured and chugged much too fast.

"Its Saturday," Mokuba stated deadpanned, as if that explained everything. He watched his brother chug more milk, worriedly taking in the slight sway in the teen's steps. "Are you okay, big brother?"

A growl sounded from Kaiba's throat and he turned, tired eyes narrowed. "Why wouldn't I be?" 

Mokuba looked down shyly, stunned by his brother's harsh tone. "You... er... don't look that great," he mumbled, choosing his words carefully this time.

There was a sigh and the shuffle of clothing before a hand settled on Mokuba's shoulder, squeezing it reassuringly. "I'm sorry, Mokuba," murmured Kaiba softly, his sapphire eyes surprisingly apologetic. "You know I'm not exactly a morning person."

Mokuba snorted.

Kaiba had the grace to give a slight smile. "There's nothing wrong with me, so you don't have to worry." Ruffling the younger boy's hair in a rare display of affection, he turned away to restart his hunt for the toast Mokuba had apparently used and hidden.

"You're lying."

The words stopped Kaiba dead in his tracks like a hard slap to the cheek. He swiveled around slowly, a flicker of hurt on his normally stolid face.

Mokuba sat at the counter clutching his toast, blue-gray eyes piercing and accusing as they bore into Kaiba's back, avoiding eye contact. He looked hurt. "Why are you lying to me, big brother?" The child's was trembling and hitched.

Kaiba looked away, silent, hands clenching at his sides.

Mokuba's frown deepened.  "There's gotta be something bothering you or you wouldn't look like cra--" he paused, seeing Kaiba stiffen, "--look like... that..." he finished lamely.

The teen sighed once again, taking a seat by Mokuba and running a hand through his hair. It was no use keeping anything from his younger brother, he knew. If he tried, no doubt Mokuba would hunt him down and force it out of him. "I... haven't been sleeping well..." he mumbled into his hands, resting his weary head upon his palms and fingers.

Mokuba's eyebrows rose, and in an instant, he exploded, toast flying everywhere. "Big brother, but you _promised_ me you'll stop working so late and--"

"I'm not working that late."

Mokuba paused in mid-sentence, stunned. "Then...?"

"Dreams," Kaiba twitched, rubbing his temple in a pitiful attempt to stop the building-up of what seemed to be a very impressive headache, "I can't sleep because of these... these _dreams_." His voice hitched at the mere word. He felt like a fool; here he was, the great Seto Kaiba, confessing paranoia to his little brother about some imaginary images in his head.

Bewildered, Mokuba's eyebrows disappeared into his hairline. "...Oh." His eyes crossed, fingers fumbling nervously around his toast. "Um... then shouldn't you get counseling?"

Kaiba chuckled dryly, reaching over to ruffle his brother's hair once more. "Like I said, its nothing to worry about. Dreams and nightmares are quite normal." Falling silent, he eyed his abandoned cup of milk with a frown, clearly not believing his own words.

There was no answer out of Mokuba for a while, and Kaiba sank his head in his hands once more, praying that the child would go watch TV and just leave him alone. For long moments he basked alone in silence, the warm sunlight filtering in from the glazed window giving him very little comfort. Then he felt skinny arms wrap around his own and something delicious and warm being stuck under his nose.

"Want some toast, big brother?"

Kaiba blinked at the plate, then narrowed his eyes at his brother, who managed to look relatively innocent. "You little twerp, you hid it!"

"Did not," scoffed Mokuba as if the very idea was absurd, "You just didn't look hard enough."

Giving a chuckle, Kaiba poked Mokuba hard in the ribs, watching with satisfaction as the boy collapse in a fit of giggles. Soon, food forgotten, the two were running around the kitchen, poking and tickling each other like mad. Not that Kaiba was very ticklish --at least not in any places he hoped his brother knew about-- but he still felt immensely better, grinning like a fool.

RRRRIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNGGGGGGG. RRRRRIIIIIIINNNNNNNNGGGGGG.

Both brothers froze, panting, hair a mess. As one, they turned toward the kitchen phone, a sleek, video-linked cordless that, unfortunately, had the world's most obnoxious ring. Kaiba narrowed his eyes at it with a suspicious glare that could freeze even ice.

Very few people knew the Kaiba manor's personal phone number. Unfortunately, Yugi and co were included in those few. It was Mokuba, of course, that gave the number out, and knowing that his little brother was in desperate need of companionship, Kaiba reluctantly allowed it. He had Caller ID, after all, and it was KaibaCorp's personal version, capable of locating the caller and his position down to the last centimeter using high-orbiting satellites. Plus, if necessary, those satellites could take near microscopic pictures and lock on voice identification, not to mention they carried the capabilities of blowing an offensive caller into smithereens. This had all been a secret to the world --considering it was well-known knowledge that Kaiba had long stopped using his stepfather's technology -- until Jou made a prank call and found out that apparently the young CEO of KaibaCorp took his privacy very seriously. No one died in that _particular _incident, thankfully, but not surprisingly Yugi was now the only one with the guts to call from time to time.    

With a gleeful squeal, Mokuba dashed for the phone.

Unfortunately, being closer and having longer arms, Kaiba stopped his brother in mid-step and reached to pick up the phone himself. Taking the moment to compose himself, he glanced at the KaibaCorp Caller ID and found that the blinking locator was located downtown, in the museum.

Stomach sinking, Kaiba flipped open the receiver and all but growled, "Ishizu, I never gave you permission to call me at this number."

"You never gave me permission to call you at any other number either," the woman sniffled calmly on the other end, clearly not surprised by his perceptiveness.

"Look, let me be truthful with you," started Kaiba irritably, "After you left, I was hoping that I would never, *ever* have to deal with you or your homicidal manic of a brother again."

"We _did_ leave for Egypt, Mr. Kaiba, but *I* never planned on staying there very long."

Kaiba made a deep, low growl of displeasure. "What the _hell_ do you want?"

"I wanted to show you something here at the museum. That's why I came back."

Kaiba's unwavering gaze intensified, burning an imaginary hole through the opposing wall. "Look, I'm touched, but you're wasting my time. I'm not interested in pretty little exhibits." He snorted and went to hang up, but not before he heard the dying whispers of her next sentence. 

"...help you."

In a flash, the receiver was back up against Kaiba's ears, suspicion radiating from him. "What?"

"I said it might just help you."

Kaiba went still. "With what?" he hissed, tone low and dangerous.

"Please do not take offense, Mr. Kaiba. I mean only to help."

"Last time you 'helped' I ended up owning a card that nearly destroyed us all."

"Let me reassure you, this has nothing to do with Duel Monsters, at least not entirely. I think you'd be interested."

Kaiba raised a sculpted eyebrow. "Interested." he echoed dryly, not entirely sure what to make of the situation.

"Yes. Very interested."

Kaiba's eyes narrowed. "Fine. But make it quick."

~*~*~*~*~*~

A half an hour later, a sleek black limo pulled up in front of Domino Museum, the two Kaiba brothers stepping out complete and total opposites. The elder wa dressed in his traditional white trench coat, glowering at everything, trusty silver briefcase and cell phone in tow. Mokuba, on the other hand, was dressed in jeans and a fuzzy sweater, practically bouncing with excitement. He had whined and begged until his big brother let him come, though only after thoroughly convincing the teen that he would not be killed, kidnapped or harmed in any way.       

Kaiba swept up the stairs like the devil himself, and what few pedestrians there were around quickly got out of his way. Mokuba tagged along happily, nearly running to keep up with his brother's longer legs.

Through the glass doors they went, entering near pitch-darkness, the museum not open until noon on Saturdays. The air was cold, drafty and dry, kept that way for the sake of the artifacts. Scowling irritably, Kaiba made a brief check that Mokuba was close by before making a move into the darkness, preferably to find a light switch or strangle some poor janitor.

Almost immediately, a single light above them switched on, bathing them in glowing, florescent light.

Ishizu awaited them. She stood in the middle of the entrance hall like some awaiting host, an air of great calm and patience about her. Dressed, like always, in her shoulder-revealing Egyptian robe, she nodded her head toward them both. "Welcome," she murmured quietly, a faint smile upon her lips, though in the shadow of the museum this went unnoticed. "Prompt as always."

Mokuba smiled at her in greeting.

Kaiba, on the other hand, locked his blue eyes to hers, clearly not one for small talk. "Alright, look, I'm here. Now tell me what's so damn important."

'Impatient as always...' Ishizu added to herself before she nodded, producing a thin folder. "I wanted to show you some results of my research on this new exhibit."

Kaiba looked from the folder to her and back to the folder, face expressionless but eyes alit with arctic fire. For a moment he seemed torn between snatching the folder and tearing it apart right then and there. "This is about Egypt, isn't it?" he managed finally, voice dangerously calm.

Ishizu pulled off a surprised look that fooled no one. Her eyes smiled. "Why yes, how did you ever know?"

"Don't _toy_ with me, Ishizu," growled Kaiba, pushing the folder away. "I've told you before, I'm not interested in kilts and magic and what not." He glared sharply when the woman tried to protest. "You're wasting my *time*. Don't _ever_ do it again." 

Ishizu frowned, though she didn't look too taken aback by his reaction. She slowly withdrew the folder with a small sigh. "Very well. If that is how you feel, Mr. Kaiba, I'll hold on to this, just in case you want it later," She tucked it calmly under her arm, then thoughtfully added, "Would you like to take a look at the exhibit?"

Kaiba scoffed, already turning to leave, shifting his briefcase to his other hand. "Mokuba!" he barked out without looking back.

Ishizu watched him go somewhat sadly, almost hurt by the blatantly rejection though she knew there was nothing she could do to convince him to stay. 'Must you always choose the hard way, old friend...?' She shook her head in annoyance, looking down at the folder in her hands. It contained the answers that she knew Kaiba sought for, complete with digital data that not even the CEO could ignore. 

It was just too bad he didn't take it.

Mokuba, who had been fascinated by the number of naked statues in the vicinity, scurried after his brother, sending Ishizu an apologetic look. "Sorry, Ishizu. I think this is all really cool, but I don't think _he_ like exhibits very much..." he mumbled sheepishly. As an afterthought, he mumbled, "Would you mind if I dropped by later? It may not mean much, but *I'd* like to see that new exhibit." 

Ishizu smiled warmly. "You're welcome anytime, Mokuba." She patted his shoulder warmly and slipped a piece of paper from the folder into the boy's hand. "Show this to your big brother for me. And be good."

Mokuba looked at the paper and nodded, racing off toward the doors, outside of which Kaiba was waiting impatiently. "Bye, Ishizu!" the boy called over his shoulder, only to realize the woman was gone.

~*~*~*~*~*~     

When Mokuba scrambled back in the car, he was startled and upset to find Kaiba already working on his laptop, typing away mindlessly. "Big brother..." the boy started warningly.

Kaiba sighed slightly as his brother settled by his side. "Mokuba, you _know_ I missed some important work this week and unless you want me staying up late, I might as well get it done today." His voice was reasonable but aggravated, whether it be from his pounding headache or not, he didn't know.

"But its Saturday!" exclaimed Mokuba with wide eyes, slamming the door behind him.

"Hm," was his only answer.

Pursing his lips as the limo began to move, Mokuba shoved the piece of paper under Kaiba's nose. "Look."

Kaiba blinked at it blankly, then placidly moved it out of his way so he could see his laptop's screen once more. "What is it?" he sighed, clearly not interested as his fingers flew.

"Something Ishi-- I mean, something that I found at the museum." Mokuba frowned at his brother's lack of reaction and opened the paper himself, scanning it quickly. "Hey, big brother--"

"--Not now, Mokuba--"

"It's a poem."

"That's nice."

Mokuba frowned at it. "It's a really _old_ poem."

"Wonderful."

"Its almost four thousand years old, big brother."

"Good for it."

Mokuba pouted. "Its Egyptian."

That caught him. Though barely perceptible, there was a slight pause in Kaiba's typing, though in an instant the slim fingers were flying across the laptop once more. "Really?" Kaiba's steely voice betrayed nothing.

Mokuba rolled his eyes. His brother was stubborn as an ass sometimes, for lack of a better word. "Yes, _really_. And Ish-- I mean, *I* think you should really read it."

This time it was Kaiba that rolled his eyes. "Mokuba, I don't think its necessary that--"

Mokuba scowled threateningly, a trait that apparently had rubbed off him from the elder Kaiba's of the family. "Someday, big brother, you're going to worry yourself _sick_." He took one of Kaiba's hands and forcedly stuck the paper in it, mentally adding that if he was going to jump to the top of his brother's hit list, it was all Ishizu's fault. "_Read_."

Kaiba paused briefly to eye him strangely, before sighing. He might as well; after all, the sooner this little debate ended the sooner he could go back to work. With a faint growl, his infamous blue eyes descended upon that dreaded sheet of paper.

_LOVE'S PRETENCE _[1]_  
With sickness faint and weary  
All day in bed I'll lie;  
My friends will gather near me  
And she'll with them come nigh  
She'll put shame to the doctors  
Who'll ponder over me,  
For she alone, my loved one,  
Knows well my malady___

Kaiba felt his throat tighten painfully and quickly steadied his trembling hand before his brother noticed. 

To no avail, since Mokuba did notice. 'Maybe big brother _is_ sick _after_ all...' he mused worriedly, though didn't mention it.

Awkward silence settled over them both, filled only by the cheerful humming of the limo's engine and the constant beeping of cars outside.

Sensing that something was rather amiss, Mokuba slowly went from looking over his brother's shoulder back to his own seat, his gaze focused shyly on the floor of the car. Hesitantly, he peeked at his brother out of the corner of his eyes. Kaiba scanned the poem one more time before laying it down beside him, eyes strangely vacant. Without missing a beat, his deft hands went to his laptop and shut it down, setting it just as carefully beside the poem. The CEO then sighed, raising a hand to his temple to sooth the headache that had now gotten immeasurably worse. He had a feeling he wasn't going to get any work done today.

Mokuba watched this curiously, pondering exactly how a poem managed to stop Kaiba when he could not. The boy's gaze drifted down to the poem, picking it up and rereading it, curious about what had gotten his brother upset. "Hey, big brother...?"

"...Hm...?"

"... I hope she came."  

~*~*~*~*~*~

[1] - 'Love's Pretence' is an actual ancient Egyptian poem (put here in its entirety) written some 3500 years ago. I lost the date. ^_^;; It's a really pretty poem though, and I thought it would go nicely with the story.

~*~*~*~*~*~

AN: AAAUUUUGGGHHH did everyone get the ending to this chapter? I hate to explain it, but I think it was hard to understand; Mokuba was referring to the woman in the poem who was supposedly the man's (writer's) sweetheart and whom he wished would come and learn that love was his illness. O_o Sorry, I probably just ruined it for you... 

Oh dear this whole chapter was pointless. -_-;; And both the Kaiba brothers and Ishizu were all OCC, but I can't help it! *sob* I wasn't actually planning on ending it there but it was a nice ending and the chapter was getting too long when Yugi and the gang get dragged into the whole thing. Sorry, I'm running low on 'descriptive-juice' so I apologize if I'm barely describing anything. I don't want to overdo it like I think I did a few times in CWM. ^_^;; Are the chapters short enough for you guys this time? :-p

NEXT UPDATE: (VERY soon cuz I feel bad that this chapter was so crappy) the opening of a new Egyptian exhibit and a new way of way of seeing dead people 'come back to life'

I'm SO sorry for such a shitty and pointless and short chapter. I'll make it up somehow, I swear! *sob* But please review anyway! I really need it!


	3. The Second Boy King

Hopefully you guys will be happier with this chapter. Its much longer and took quite a lot out of me to write, though the first half is very boring (despite the fact that I tried my hardest to make it relatively worthwhile to read). ^_^;; Not much romance, I'm afraid, but we get to see Yami's body and stuff. U know, plot building; boring but necessary. ^_^;; At least for my stories... Ugh, I am officially out of descriptive juice and refuse to describe anything. Besides, the present day world isn't nearly as romantic or interesting as ancient Egypt. -_-;; 

ANYWAY, wow I never realized people LIKED my long chapters. O_o Thanks guys! Yup, we all luv Mokie to bits, don't we? *squeal* *glomps the poor guy* None of the people in the last chapter were OCC? Okay, cool. I prefer Mokuba more like the ickle little brother cuz being mature is Seto's job. (doesn't to a good job sometimes, eh? O_o) Oh yeah, I should mention that I've been soaking up Reiron Club and Rapan's art, so thus Yami will be very feminine in descriptions cuz that's how I see him now. O_o Sorry if anyone's bugged by that; me a HUGE fan of cute uke Yami. ^_^ Yup, we should all welcome Ishizu and yes, ickle Seto's always stubborn and will remain that way (hopefully) for the rest of the story. ^_^ Yes, this chapter is more revolving around Yami (actually, the next chapter is too and even more so) and Yugi and gang. Oh, for those of you wondering, Ishizu does know about Yami/Kaiba's past, to some extent. She only has a general idea since she's been reborn and can really only rely on the Necklace (which, as u will see later in the story, is rather fickle and prefers to leave some things private ^_^) on what to do or what happened in the past. Lol, no, the folder isn't THAT important; the story's not going to revolve around it or anything, but at one point its going pop back up and slap Kaiba in the face. ^_^ 

EMERGENCY REPLIES:

To **S.K Hashmi**: first of all, I usually don't reply personally cuz I don't want people feeling left out, but I just HAD to reply to you because you have just given me the longest review of my life. O_o Hm... just curious; how did CWM's epilogue change the feel of the story? I was going for hopeful so people weren't just going to think Yami died and... stayed dead. ^_^;; Thanks for liking the rest of the story though. ^_^ Ah, yes, Harry Potter. I was actually thinking that and I've played around with that idea (believe me, I'm getting desperate) but I'm not fully sure of how that might work. I might use it, though, but I think the first dream was already too developed. Or not. I dunno, I'm very confused about the whole thing. ^_^;; I think I'll give up on the rational line of dreams and just make them completely random. Mainly, I think the dream will be in two parts: the first part will be completely fluffy and pointless, since it is mainly Kaiba longing for some kind of companionship; the second will have much more to do with his memories and *might* possibly evolve, but I'm not up to brainstorming yet. ^_^;; Lol okay okay, I swear to make my chapters longer from now on!! And thank you for liking those passages in the last chapter. I felt like the chapter was lagging and getting boring so I tossed in some strange stuff off the top of my head; u can tell I don't normally write humor though. -_-;; Okay, I'll keep tone and mood in mind when I write, though I can't assure you it'll come out great. ^_^ Thank you so much for your feedback!

To **Komioji Fin**: okay this will sound very dumb but I'm not too familiar with your choice of words in your review. ^_^;; What does 'shiznat' mean? O_o Hm... yeah I thought it was weird too how the poem seemed to rhyme so well in English but oh well, beats me. Yeah, incredible isn't it? I happen to recall it might be from somewhere in the 1600-1300 B.C. time, but I could be totally off. ^_^;; You named your newts Osirius and Isis? How cute!! I'm touched! Glad I could... er... help you name your pets. Lol, yup, Yami will come back in this chapter (the next one is almost completely him too ^_^). Thanks for ur support! I feel luved. ^_^ Much love back, Komioji Fin!

To **Yummy Yami**: lol I could just email you but I'm too lazy. Anyway, thanks lots for the more links! I'm so happy now. :-p Eh, little problem. I don't know Japanese and certainly don't know how to type it or which characters represent Yami or Kaiba. ;_; Thanks for trying to help anyway! Lol yeah actually you're probably the first person to guess (relatively) why Ishizu hadn't just blurt out the whole thing. Do you think Seto would listen? I think Ishizu's just gunna save her time and effort and let him be his stubborn self and find out the hard way. :-p Mokie and Seto are so cute together. *glomp* I think I have another chapter (number 10 or something) that's going to be dedicated to their relationship, but I'm not giving anything away. ^_^ Shorter chapters are good in a way cuz yes, I get to update more and I don't have to completely waste my reserves trying to write something so bloody long. *pant pant* I think generally DC's chapters are going to be shorter then CWM's, but that means its already up to 13 chapters (and counting O_o), not including a possible epilogue. LOL yes, here I am, mentioning you again. You don't have to be so flattered; I don't ignore my reviewers, you know. ^_^     

~~~~~~~~~~  
/.../ = mindlink connection (between aibou's and yami's)

'...' = personal thoughts

... = translated ancient Egyptian

//...// = thought speak (for gods only, assumed to be ancient Egyptian though understandable to all)

"..." = spoken dialogue (if in English, assumed to be Japanese)

_lots of italics_ = dreams/flashbacks/visions

**bold** = song lyrics

[ ] = footnotes

AN = author's note  
~~~~~~~~~~

~*~*~*~*~*~The Second Boy King~*~*~*~*~*~

Ever so slowly, sleep lifted from his mind and the first thing Yugi was able to make out was the happy chirping of birds outside his window. Fighting a yawn, he sat up stiffly and rubbed his eyes, wincing when he remembered the rather nasty tumble he took in the middle of the night. Rubbing his sore behind, he kicked off the blankets and limped into an upright position, toes curling in the chill. Blinking, he realized the cards that he had spilled so carelessly across the floor the night before were gone. Panic rose in his throat, and the boy spun around in a searching circle only to find his deck balanced neatly beside where his head at been on his pillow.

Frowning, Yugi turned slowly to the rest of his room, still rubbing his butt. The curtains, usually left wide open, were now closed, not a wrinkle on them. Beyond the cloth he could make out bright sunlight and the shadow of trees, though not much else. His homework, which had been strewn across the ground, now laid precisely upon his desk, his pens and pencils in perfect order. His furniture, which consisted of the table by the window, the bed on the nearest wall, a drawer on the wall beside it, and a huge bookcase against the other, were now miraculously clear of the dust bunnies that slowly accumulated over time. The large posters taped around the room, mainly of Duel Monsters and what not, had been sagging and hanging, but now they were tightly stuck to the wall to the point that tape no longer seemed needed. Here and there the spots of blue paint that Yugi had accidentally spilled were gone, despite the fact that the boy _knew_ no type of cleaner could possibly be powerful enough to erase the color from his carpet. Speaking of the carpet, Yugi was _sure_ that he had never seen it _quite_ that white before.

Scratching his head, Yugi let out a sigh. 

Yami must have been brooding more then normal last night. Having the pride and often the ego of the king that he is, Yami usually refused to do chores of any sort, lacking the body to do so in the first place. But often in the middle of the night, when he had nothing to do, the spirit took his mind off more important manners by playing around with his magic, taking on the challenge of cleaning Yugi's stuff. 

Needless to say, if Yami got really kinky, Yugi usually couldn't figure out exactly where his all his things went or where other things came from. At one point the boy found a frozen turkey stuck in his underwear drawer. He figured his yami had a very strange sense of humor. Of course, he also figured Bakura was worse; Ryou once burst into tears when he told of how the tomb robber had stuck the pet goldfish out on the roof and let them bake.

Not terribly surprised to find that Yami had retreated back to his soul room, Yugi yawned a massive yawn and stretched painfully, sighing in bliss as his back popped. Slipping his Puzzle around his head, he grabbed some clothes for the day and shuffled out the door.

Down the hall to the bathroom, he was met by Sugoroku, who was dressed in his best and looked much too cheerful for his own good.

"Mornin', Grandpa," yawned Yugi, still rubbing his eyes as he stumbled down the corridor.

"Ah, Yugi, finally!" Sugoroku beamed, stopping the boy easily with two large hands upon his shoulders, "I called so many times I was worried you might have died in your sleep!" He continued on excitedly before Yugi got a chance to retort, "Listen, there's a new exhibit at the museum and I just got a personal invitation to go before it opens."

Yugi's eyes lit up, though the dark bags under them sagged. "Oh, that's great, Grandpa!"

Sugoroku rolled his eyes, messing up Yugi's hair as if to shake the boy awake. "No, little one, I was hoping you could come along with me! The invitation said to bring some family and friends, so if you want you can invite Jou and Honda and--" he continued on for a while, ranting off some of Yugi's friends which weren't even considered close to the boy.

Yugi had never seen the old man so excited. He grinned, hoping he didn't look _too_ tired. "Sure, Grandpa, I'll get the gang. Just lemme get a shower and get something to eat. Then we can go, okay?"

~*~*~*~*~*~

Sugoroku's good mood continued on through most of the morning, bouncing and skipping around to the point of annoyance. Grumbling, Yugi tried to dry his hair and eat at the same time, failing to swallow properly in the process. His yami chuckled at him through their bond, using a little bit of magic to help evaporate the moisture from Yugi's hair. Yugi sent him a dry thanks, making a mental note to eat slower.

Cheerfully humming, his grandfather dumped more pancakes on his plate, ignoring the fact that it was overloading. "Eat up, Yugi. We're going to be at the museum for a while."

"Really?" Yugi sighed, taking a small bite. "Why are you so excited about this, Grandpa? Its not like we haven't been there before."

Sugoroku dumped the pan in the sink and turned, a mysterious twinkle in his eyes. "Lets just say... I have a special relationship with this particular exhibit."

"You mean you're friends with the researchers?"

"Not really, but--" Sugoroku suddenly looked troubled, as if he had said too much. Mumbling, he turned away, managing a light shrug as he began to clean the plates. "Never mind. Anyway, this exhibit is special. Its about a new tomb they just excavated down in the Valley of the Kings," he explained slowly, almost imagining his grandson's eyes lighting up behind his eyes.

Indeed they did, Yugi leaning forward in his seat, unsure he heard right, his eyes sparkling.

/Valley of the Kings.../ Yami whispered, a flash of both pain and joy flooding through him. /The Great Place.../ [1] That was where the kings of Egypt were buried... Where his ancestors must be buried, and where, theoretically, _he_ should be buried...

...if he had been buried at all. Of course, judging by his chaotic rein and no doubt even more chaotic death, Yami doubted his tomb --assuming he had one-- would be anything like the ordinary. Despite the fact he slept in it for thousands of years, he had very little memory of the place, his powers having been limited by the broken state of the Puzzle. Heck, Yami doubted if he had even been _in_ his tomb for all those years, let alone knew where the tomb itself was. For all he knew, Shadi's ancestors could have kept the Puzzle under their bathtub and he would have no recollection of it. He did remember, however, that he 'slept' in a rather dark and dingy place, though at the time the physical world had been a low point of interest to him. Plus, almost immediately after his death, the Puzzle went dead, robbing from him the ability to form conscious thought. No doubt that coma-like state led to the complete wipeout of his memories. The next thing Yami knew, he and Yugi were screaming hysterically at each other from the opposite sides of the same body.

Sugoroku continued, knowing that he had caught the boy's interest. "It hasn't been fully excavated yet, but they have seen enough to believe it far exceeds Tutankhamun's."

/Tutankhamun?!?/ scoffed Yami.

/Tutankhamun?/ Yugi echoed, feeling the spirit's utter outrage at the name. He quelled it as best as he could, though he was much too wound up to do so. "More then _Tutankhamun's_...?" he breathed, heart racing.

Of all the things he had read about... Of all the things his grandfather and his yami had told him about... Of all the things that he had seen... He never imagined _this_. A tomb greater then Tutankhamun's! It was unheard of!

Indeed, Yami, always eager for some memory of his homeland, seemed ready to take over and run for the museum once given the chance. 

Sugoroku grinned broadly, equally excited, turning briefly to hand his grandson a cup of orange juice before going back to his chores. "Yup, but don't say anything just yet. This exhibit's only a sample; researchers have been trying to open it fully for years but they've met..." his eyes twinkled, "...plenty of obstacles."

Yugi's eyebrows rose, and he felt Yami's interest peak to dangerous levels. /Yami, you know anything about this?/

/...I... um.../ Yami mumbled, in an uncharacteristically meek manner, /I don't think so.../ There was a wave of bitterness that followed his words.

/...Oh./ Yugi cursed himself for poking at such a tender subject. /Well, um, we'll go see then, huh?/ "How long ago was this tomb opened?" he asked slowly, trying to sort through the gibberish of excited questions that swam in his mind.

"Very recently, in fact, though there had been many--" Sugoroku winced, though the expression went unseen, "--failures in the past. There's a rumor that a man went through it a few decades ago, but..." Here a shadow crossed Sugoroku's face, his eyes suddenly distant.

Yugi watched his grandfather's back eagerly, food forgotten.

A long moment of silence.

Sugoroku shook his head, finally shaking himself out of it. "Eat, Yugi," he said finally, voice soft and hollow.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Jou could not drive for his life. At least that's what Anzu shrieked when she and Honda appeared from Jou's beat up truck, both extremely pale and a tad on the green side. They all but leapt out of the car just in time to see an angry fellow driver zoom past Jou, giving him a non-too-friendly finger sign. Jou stuck his head out the window and screamed back some rather uncouth words, grumbling as he parked. Anzu and Honda backed away quickly as he did so, as if the truck might just grow a mouth and eat them alive. Jou sent them a sour pout as he climbed out. 

The three kids cheered up considerably when they saw Sugoroku and Yugi waiting for them on the highest stairs of the Domino Museum. Beside them, to the newcomers' surprise, was Mokuba Kaiba.

"Hey, guys," greeted Anzu cheerfully, nodding respectively at Sugoroku. "Mr. Motou."

"I take it you survived the car ride here," teased Sugoroku with a smile.

"You _rode_ in _Jou's_ car?" echoed Mokuba, eyes wide. "Big brother said that was suicide!"

"It _is_ suicide," piped in Honda, brushing himself off and trying desperately to bring some color back to his cheeks, "But you know, after the whole virtual realm thing, we're used to it."

"Money-bags knows _nothing_ of my driving skills," growled Jou as he came up, proudly jingling his car keys.

Mokuba raised an eyebrow, suddenly defensive. "He saw your car flip and nearly run him over!"

"Yeah, well stupid virtual trucks don't drive too well. Besides, what are you doing here? I thought Kaiba kept you chained to a pole after Noah and all."

Mokuba laughed and shrugged. "He got sick of me whining and kicked me out."

Everyone stared.

Yugi frowned worriedly, the expression infecting the others quickly.

"He kicked you _out_? Old _money_-_bags_ kicked _you_ out?! What kind of a brother is he?!" raged Jou, steaming at the ears.

Mokuba looked down at his sneakers, almost ashamed. "He's had a bad headache for the last few days and didn't want to be disturbed," he whispered quietly, with a forced shrug. "Besides, he didn't want to come anyway."

Everyone frowned at each other, but the moment was broken when a soft voice interrupted them.

"Good morning."

The kids and Sugoroku turned to see Ishizu standing at the door, smiling serenely at them.

Jou gaped. "Wait... but didn't you leave for Egypt?"

"I did."

Silence.

Yugi stepped up awkwardly, shaking her hand, eyes wide. "Well then, its... er... good to have you back then, Ishizu." Regaining control of his face, he grinned broadly. 

He had been in a heap of trouble without Ishizu, though he hadn't really told anyone. Despite his natural curiosity and longing, Yami couldn't stand to research on Egypt, pictures of the crumbling ancient world often sending him into long lapses of mourning. The spirit often depended on Ishizu's stories, taking superficial comfort in believing that they were real, that perhaps she could really see into the world that was once his but is now long gone. However, once Ishizu and Malik left for their long-awaited return to Egypt after Battle City, Yami fell into something like a depression and hasn't pulled out of it ever since.  

But now that Ishizu was, quite obviously, back, Yugi prayed that Yami would just get over his dreary spell. Somehow though, he doubted even Ishizu's return could help his poor suffering yami. Something had been bothering the spirit dreadfully as of late, and Yugi feared that it came from Yami's sudden habit to brood, not terribly surprising given that they had a lack of anything to do.

Invisible to everyone else, Yami appeared in a shimmer of wispy magic beside Yugi, dressed in the identical black leather outfit that so proudly donned his hikari. He watched Ishizu intensely with his sharp eyes, clearly curious but relieved by her reappearance.

Ishizu could not see him exactly like Yugi could, but with a Millennium Item, she sensed his presence and immediately sank into a small bow, head lowered. "My king..."

/It is good to see you again, Ishizu.../ murmured Yami quietly, unmoving lips twisting upward in a tired but genuine smile. Though the woman could not reply like Yugi, he took comfort in her small nod of a response.

Jou, unwittingly, stepped right through Yami to greet Ishizu happily, followed by Anzu, Honda and a curious Sugoroku who had only heard of this amazing woman-friend of his grandson. The two immediately struck out a conversation about Egypt and what not, and in moments were chatting like old friends.

Yugi spent the next few minutes alone, trying to sooth his yami's annoyance in getting simply 'stepped through'. Unfortunately, his efforts were rudely interrupted by the screeching approach of a badly driven taxi.

They all turned to find Ryou scrambling out of the car, pulling on a jacket while he paid the driver. "Am I late?" he panted as he rushed up to them, British accent clear but soft.

"Just in time, actually," announced Ishizu warmly, her eyes drifting to the air beside Ryou, sensing Bakura's presence. She narrowed her eyes but turned away, stepping inside. "Follow me please, everyone."

~*~*~*~*~*~

/Yami... are you seeing what I'm seeing...?/ Yugi wasn't terribly surprised to hear no answer, watching Yami's ghostly form wandering about with his head in the clouds and his eyes wide with fascination.

Yugi himself was in a similar state. 

This tomb... Kami-sama, how could Tutankhamun's compare...?

When Ishizu had turned on the lights to the museum's unfinished new exhibit, there wasn't a soul in the room who hadn't stopped breathing. Littering the ground in marked spots or already under their air-tight glass chambers were, literally, pieces of ancient Egypt. There was an astonishing amount of jewelry strewn haphazardly across the floor, each and every one made of such tiny beads and perfectly molded pendants that made you wonder if the ancients were really as backwards as they were supposed to be. Here and there were chairs and couches of pure gold made in the shape of cats and lions, their paws perfectly carved down to every last claw, their heads high and proud. Beautiful stone statues of kings, animals and gods --some remarkably intact-- were planted all over the places, some of them as small and tiny as dolls, others amazingly life-like and towering even over Honda. At the far end of the winding exhibit was an impressive collection of busts and mannequins, each propped up on half-pillars and clearly bearing Egyptian attire.

It was here that, eventually, Yugi ran back into Yami.

The spirit stood under one of the central mannequins, looking up at it with severe curiosity, his unwavering look so intense that Yugi was surprised the mannequin hadn't already burst into flames. Yugi followed his yami's gaze, taking in the dummy's strangely small size and the white tunic that tightly clothed it. A long purple cape was draped across its chest and back, hiding a gold collar plate and two wings that wrapped around the shoulders. A gold belt enfolded the mannequin's slender waist, matching the leg and arm bands that wrapped around the model's limbs. An exquisite pair of large earrings the shape of ankhs hung from the dummy's ears, flashing brilliantly in the light at every disturbance. 

/That could probably fit you./ Yugi teased gently.

To his surprise, Yami narrowed his eyes, gaze never breaking. /...Perhaps.../ he murmured absent-mindedly, obviously deep in thought.

Yugi felt a violent shudder run up his spine.

"This is a model of the owner of this tomb. I designed it myself," came Ishizu's voice, so close and so sudden that she made them both jump. The woman stood just behind them, making it obvious that she was avoiding the so-called 'empty' space beside Yugi. "Supposedly this was the king's most common attire... At least, that is what I believe." There was a strange twinkle in her eyes. 

Yami remained strangely silent, his gaze returning once more to the mannequin, a flash of sadness and longing in his brilliant eyes.

He didn't catch the ghost of a secretive smile on Ishizu's face. 

She raised her hand to pat the dummy's foot fondly, drawing attention to the delicate gold sandals that adored the mannequin's slender feet. "This model is made of plaster, as you can see. It was made based off the mummy itself."

"Mummy?" Jou peeked his head into the group, his hair unknowingly passing right through Yami's stomach. "Wow, you got the actual _mummy_ here?"

Yugi felt an uncomfortable twinge from his yami and sent him a wave of sympathy, though not just to calm him from Jou's rather rude... er... intrusion of the spirit's form. As it turned out, Yami was absolutely outraged when he first learned that most recovered Egyptian mummies had been removed from their tombs for further research or, even worse, for _burning_. Disturbance of the dead --especially the royal ones-- was against everything the Egyptians believed in, and Yami had been quite touchy about this subject. Needless to say, Yugi let him be and never mentioned it again.

Now it seems the issue was unavoidable.

Ishizu must have sensed this because she blushed lightly, slim shoulders slumping in shame. "It was not my orders to remove the mummy, though it was necessary to transport it for research purposes. I wish that once all investigation is done, I might led an expedition to return the body back to its rightful resting place."

/Research purposes...!/ snorted Yami bitterly. In a flash of disgust, he disappeared back in his soul room, leaving a stunned hikari and blinking Ishizu behind him.

/Yami--/ started Yugi, but was met by abnormally tight mental barriers. The boy backed away instantly, feeling hurt. He knew Yami had been extremely moody recently, but never had the spirit blocked _him_ out.

Ishizu seemed embarrassed, shifting uneasily. "Would you like to see the mummy?" she asked after a moment, as if in an attempt to make Yugi feel better.

Anzu, Mokuba and Honda, now drawn by the commotion, rushed over from where they had been debating the worth of a particularly valuable-looking jar. Mokuba had been winning of course, humiliating the other two with his superior knowledge of money and trade that he had inherited from his brother. Ryou had been standing to the side, listening intently though wincing every so often when his yami mentally screamed out disagreements. Needless to say, the Spirit of the Ring had been very very happy up until then, and despite both Ryou and Yami's displeasure, had been openly mumbling his plans of how to overtake this place and sell all the treasure on the black market, something that Bakura was pleased to find hadn't changed much since ancient times.  

"Would we? Yeah!" Mokuba exclaimed, looking at Ishizu and the mannequin excitedly, "Wait until I tell big brother! HA, he'll FREAK when I tell him I saw a dead guy!"

Yugi was very glad Yami didn't hear that.

Nodding, Ishizu silently motioned for them to follow her. "I will be honored to show you."

Yugi bit his lip, unsure of what his yami's reaction would be if the spirit ever found out that an Egyptian mummy was on open display right here in this very building. Hesitantly, the hikari prodded gently at Yami's presence, but still met amazingly high barriers. Sighing and deciding that his yami would just have to suck it up, Yugi rushed after his friends before skidding to a stop, turning. "Grandpa? You coming?"

He found Sugoroku back by the mannequin, mumbling to himself and staring up at it with a frantic, strange look in his eyes.

Frowning, Yugi edged closer, catching the word 'impossible!' over and over again. "Er... Grandpa?"

Sugoroku didn't hear him. "No... This _can't be_..." He reached up with a shaking hand, eyes wide and teary.

~~~**FLASHBACK**~~~

"Give me your hand, Shimon..."

Sugoroku looked at him dazedly, his vision wavering and his fingers going numb with strain. 'W-What...?' Somewhere in the back of his mind, he realized that he was going into shock. _He was losing too much blood_...

"Listen to me, Shimon..." Though his lips never once moved, the boy's voice turned urgent, his large eyes worried. "You _must_ give me your hand...!"

'So tired...' Blinking owlishly, Shimon processed the boy's unspoken words slowly in his head and deemed them worthy of attention, though it was so bloody hard to _focus_. Slowly, painfully, his wounded arm rose. It was torture every inch of the way, and Sugoroku bit his lip to prevent himself from screaming in agony. But slowly and surely his trembling hand rose, torn muscles working in overload to try and pull it ever higher.

"That's it, Shimon..." The boy's hands lowered, encouragingly, a smile upon his pale lips.

A pained whimper escaped Sugoroku's lips despite his efforts, the bullet in his shoulder happily protesting his every movement.

"Almost there, Shimon...Come on...!"

It happened so fast the poor man barely realized it before an airy, evanescent hand snagged his own, pulling him upward with the strength and swiftness of ten men. A tingling sensation like nothing he had ever felt before spread like wildfire throughout his body, and for a moment Sugoroku felt utterly refreshed, pain nothing but a distant memory. In a flash, he found himself laying face first on the bridge, the cold stone against his cheek, the engravings digging into his skin, his breath coming in frantic, hysterical gasps.  

For long moments he laid there in a puddle of his own blood, unmoving, drifting in and out of consciousness. He was a pathetic sight, his face pale and covered in sweat, his once glorious suit ripped and ruined. But still the poor man felt the angel's presence beside him, ghostly fingers brushing his face and his body, healing and soothing his pain everywhere they touched.

"Stay with me, Shimon..." the boy whispered, voice tight, "Stay with me... I need you to _live_."

~~~**END FLASHBACK**~~~

'It can't be...!' Sugoroku felt his blood run cold. 

Even after all this time, he hadn't forgotten one single detail of the benevolent spirit that had saved him all those years ago. He hadn't forgotten how ageless the boy's eyes were, or how deep and wise they seemed as they smiled down upon him. Not had he forgotten the slender hands that had pulled him up from sure death, nor the strange warmth from the spirit's fingers that had given him enough strength to stand and grab the Puzzle. He hadn't forgotten the soft voice that had directed him to an exit, nor the invisible arms that had helped him to walk when he was overwhelmed by pain. 

The boy saved him that day. 

Faithfully, the spirit had followed and assisted Sugoroku for the many hours it took for him to stumble back outside. Even when the wounded man fell to the ground in a dead faint, the ageless spirit had stayed by his side, watching him from the protective shadows of the tomb, somehow keeping him warm throughout the freezing night. That dawn, Sugoroku's camel had wandered from camp and found him laying against the tomb's doorway, slumped over himself and a strange box tucked under his torn arm. The beast nudged him curiously, sniffing his hair before nipping him awake. Weak, thirsty and dazed, Sugoroku could only whimper a response.

Somehow, though he had no recollection of it, he managed to climb on the camel's back, Puzzle in tow. The beast cheerfully found its own way back to a nearby village, loping into town where startled tourists and Egyptologists rushed to find a doctor for the wounded stranger on its back. The bullet was removed in an emergency surgery, and distant relatives were quickly contacted in Japan.

And yet, when he groggily awoke in the hospital many days later, Sugoroku could only think of one thing.

He never got to say goodbye.

Strangely enough, he never again mentioned one single word about his little 'adventure' in Egypt back when he was wild and free. Perhaps it was better kept a secret, he had decided the moment he healed from the Theban City hospital and was released for Japan, his hard-won ancient box tucked safety under his arm. Sugoroku never told Yugi the truth of the scar on his shoulder either; the mere memory made it sting. And even when he found out that a powerful Egyptian spirit lived in his grandson's Puzzle, the man refused to reveal anything to anyone. That day was gone and dead, as far as he was concerned. That fateful night was the night that he abandoned gambling and turned to Egyptology, and when he was too old for that he started the Game Shop back in good ol' Domino City, hoping to rest peacefully in the last years of his life. Never again did he visit the accursed tomb, and never again did he dare to utter its name.

But now it seems the past was coming back to haunt him. [2]

By some strange twist of fate, here he was, standing in the in the Domino Museum many years after his visit to Egypt, before what was undoubtedly a mirror image of his ghostly savior. Indeed, there was now no doubt in Sugoroku's mind that this exhibit was that of the most fabled tomb in all Egyptian history. _KV 88 had finally been opened_. He wasn't sure whether to be relieved or upset.

Suddenly, a small hand on his elbow made him jump.

"Grandpa?" Yugi looked worried sick, violet eyes big and wide. "Are you okay?"

Sugoroku shot him an almost frantic look before he quickly calmed, trying desperately to still his racing heart. "Why y-Yes... Yes, I'm fine." He took one last, long look at the mannequin, eyes distant, then turned back to his grandson with a distinctly fake grin. "Oh, um, let's go see that mummy, shall we?"

Yugi frowned as Sugoroku took him by the elbow and half dragged him away, in a hurry to either get away from the mannequin or to see the mummy. The boy's frown deepened as they rejoined the group. 'Geez, everyone's been acting so _weird_ lately...'

Ishizu led them deep into the exhibit and through an unlocked door labeled 'Staff Only', slipping past it without hesitance. They filed into a long, rather bland white hallway dotted with equally bland doors, not too different from the corridors of a hospital. The air here was drafty and dry, almost unbearably cold, their breaths all but freezing in front of them. Ishizu explained that it had to be this way for a reason, for mummies decompose quickly when exposed to open air; Anzu made a face. A few men and women of all different age and races fluttered about, some in white lab coats with clipboards, others delicately cradling some Egyptian artifact with gloved hands. Disappearing and reappearing effortlessly through numerous doorways, they carried that distinct, edgy excitement of scientists who had made a grand discovery, some even grinning to themselves as they hurried to their duties. Though few of the workers looked up at the group's entrance, some nodded respectively at Ishizu.

Not sooner did they take two steps did Yugi and Ishizu feel a twinge in the back of their minds, signaling that Bakura must be out and about... most likely doing something very strange. Indeed, not seconds later, a scientist suddenly slipped for no apparent reason, his clipboard flying and covering them in a shower of paper. With an audible curse, Ryou rushed forward to help the stunned man, gushing apologies.

Yami, who had apparently been aware enough to sense this, sent a rather rude remark toward Bakura that he wanted Yugi to pass on. Yugi wisely kept his mouth silent, not wanting to be subject to Bakura's irritation. One of his hands drifted protectively up to his Puzzle while the other covered to his wallet pocket, knowing that, given the chance, the tomb robber would be up to his old tricks. Not that Bakura could do anything with Yami around, but unfortunately, the Pharaoh had once again locked himself from the outside world. Which meant that the less-then-sane Spirit of the Ring was free to do whatever he wanted; never a good thing. 

'Poor Ryou,' Yugi thought with a wince, hearing Ryou stammer some more apologies as he sent the dazed and confused scientist on his way.

Indeed, with Ryou scolding 'empty air' and stopping only to help more suddenly 'clumsy' historians, the group continued on, peeking into doorways with open admiration. Each room was distinctly different from any other; some were normal, warm-looking offices that led right back to the public part of the museum, while others looked like they had been taken straight from MIB's headquarters, filled with huge machines, blinking buttons and data flying across futuristic screens.

"I never knew Egyptology was so technical," whispered Jou to Yugi and Sugoroku.

"It usually isn't," explained Sugoroku with a slight frown, "but then again, I'm a little behind the times."

"Hmph."

They walked straight for a while longer, turning occasionally and going up or down stairways. The size of this portion of the museum was impressive; never in his experienced years had Sugoroku even dreamed that the museum was indeed this big. But then again, he had been retired before it was even built.

Finally, Ishizu stopped at a large silver door, one of the largest around. "In here," she explained, punching a code into the doorway, "are where we do our research on the mummies."

"_Mummies_. Plural? You mean there's more then just the king in there?" asked Mokuba with wide eyes. More dead people! Gee, Seto was never going to let him go to _anywhere_ after this. 

Ishizu smirked. "Indeed, while this particular exhibit is based off of one Pharaoh's tomb, we had more then enough time and resources to search around the Valley itself. And we made a few surprising..." she hesitated, as if searching for the correct word, "..._discoveries_."

The door opened, revealing a large, dimly-lit chamber filled with machines, computers and communication devices of all kinds. The air was surprisingly warm here, filled with the happy beeping and ringing of machines. The instruments were manned, however, by just three elderly men, one of which was soundly asleep on a table in the corner, head on sheets of data and hand still on the cup of his now-cold coffee. By the far wall --which was made entirely of transparent blue glass-- were the other men; a stout, grandpa-like guy with a dingy lab coat typed away madly at a large computer in the corner; his companion stood staring into the glass barrier, a tall, broad-shouldered man dressed in dark slacks and a dress shirt that had apparently lost its tie and two buttons.

Beyond this man and through the glass was another room altogether, brilliant white in color and filled with what seemed like dry ice mist. Inside the air churned to an invisible wind, the mist flapping and dying as quickly as it poured out from vents in the ground. Many machines lined walls, some the kids had only seen on TV; CAT scanners, MRI machines, X-ray equipments and something that looked suspiciously like a surgery table, complete with trays upon trays of tools that varied from huge chisels to tiny dental picks. Four men walked about in the mist of these horrendous machines, all dressed in surgeon-like blue robes, a stretch cap over their hair, goggles on their eyes and a mouth-nose protector over their face. Two of them were currently unloading what looked suspiciously like a body from one of the MRI's, gently easing the small corpse from the opening in the large machine. The two other men carried clipboards and were scribbling away on them, one watching his companions' progress, the other hovering near a row of square-shaped lockers, no doubt holding more mummies.  

Taking in this all in a flash, Ryou went rigid, very quickly and very fast.

Something had startled Bakura. Something that had absolutely nothing to do with the various machines that the tomb robber no doubt would want to sabotage later. Bakura's sudden wave of shock and uncharacteristic fear nearly overwhelmed Ryou, who himself was shocked to find his fearless yami in such a state. /B-Bakura...?/ He flinched, expecting to fly against the wall to an invisible attacker.

But nothing of that sort happened. 

Instead, Bakura seemed frozen in time and space, somewhere in the vicinity of Ryou's right shoulder. /Ra.../ he whispered finally, his raspy tone rather tight, /...I think I'm in there, Ryou./

Ryou shuddered, in fright and confusion. /What... What do you mean?/

/My _body's_ in there, you nitwit./

~*~*~*~*~*~

It took a few moments for the group to gather in the room, shuddering off the cold and looking around in awe. Sugoroku struck it up with computer technician immediately, and had been fascinated by the man's explanation of what they were doing and what not. Jou and Honda went to the other computers, studying them mischievously and occasionally poking a random button or so. Mokuba was pressed against the observation wall in fascination, eyes huge, his warm breath leaving nose and hand marks on the cold glass. Yugi, on the other hand, was making sure to block any mental openings that his yami had left exposed; he didn't want the spirit to see those guys dragging around the Egyptian dead.

"This is Professor Wilson," said Ishizu finally, when she finally coaxed the tallest man to turn around. "He is our leading Egyptologist for this excavation." There was a rather dry tone in her words, but it was barely noticed.

Wilson was a rather frightening looking man with a stone-hard face, his dark eyes intense and his gaze fierce. He resembled an eagle of some sort with his huge, strong nose, complete with a mop of graying blond hair and a thin beard. He eyed the kids down one by one, piercing them through with his disdainful glare. "And these are your friends, are they, Aisha?" His voice was deep and raspy, dripping with discontent.

"--_Ishizu_, sir," corrected Ishizu promptly, and not skipping a beat, continued on, "and yes, they are my friends. I wished to show them our work."

Wilson snorted, clearly thinking the statement ridiculous. "Fine, but hurry while you're at it. We can't afford any delays."

The gang exchanged brief looks. Clearly Ishizu was unfavored by this man.

Impressively, Ishizu showed no emotion, though one of her eyes twitched. She directed them all over to the machine where Sugoroku awaited them, introducing the stout Japanese man at the computer as 'Mr. Takashi'.

Takashi seemed nice enough, his cheeks flushed and eyes bright. He kinda looked like a teddy bear; at least in Mokuba's point of view. "Well, well, well, you folks are Ishizu's friends, huh? You're in for a _treat_!" he patted the computer fondly. "We've only done this a few times, and only with Egyptian mummies."

"And what, pray tell, are you doing?" demanded Jou curiously.

Mr. Takashi's eyes lit up and he quickly explained that Egyptologists were now using advanced computer arts to study mummies. [3] He went on and, explaining X-rays to crime investigation to Tutankhamun with vigor and enthusiasm that made up for his companion's rather stolid bearings.

Meanwhile, Yugi felt a tug on his jacket and turned to find Ryou cowering beside him, the boy's amber eyes wide, his pale skin now ashen white. "Ryou... Geez, what is it? What's wrong?"

Ryou hesitated for a long moment, then lowered his voice and pulled Yugi away. "Bakura... H-He told me he senses his body here."

Yugi blinked once. Then again. Well, that was certainly unexpected. A shiver of both excitement and shock ran through him. "_Here_? Are you _sure_...?"

This could mean...

Ryou seemed frantic, eyes darting about, "I don't know," he mumbled, "but if _Bakura's_ body is here, there might... there might...um..." He struggled to say it, afraid of being overheard. "Look," he whispered finally, as if there was no other word to describe it. He pointed to the glass wall.

Yugi huddled near him, following the pointed direction with his eyes. 

The men inside the frozen chamber were still hard at work, having pulled the mummy out of the machine with great care and tenderness. Amazingly enough, one man held the body --jewelry and all-- quite effortlessly in his arms as his co-worker reset the machine. The mummy itself was small and delicate in size, half unwrapped though jewelry and pendants were clearly visible under the faded linen.

"Oh my god..." whispered Yugi when the mummy came into view, pressing his forehead against the cold glass. "Ryou, look! _On his head_..."

Left on the mummy's head was a single gold item, a tiara of some sort, shaped like a strange eye with brilliant wings extending to either side of the king's head. 

Yugi and Ryou looked at each other with wide eyes, then, as one, down to their respective Items. There was no mistaking it;_ the Millennium Eye of Ra_...!

"Yugi! Ryou!"

The two hikaris nearly jumped out of their skins.

Sugoroku frowned at them. "Come over here and look at this. Its fascinating!"

Sharing a meaningful, worried glance, the two boys scrambled back into the group, leaving the men inside to handle a body that now had far more importance then they would ever know. 

Not missing a beat, Takashi continued on excitedly. "Here, look," he insisted, typing away and clicking on a few files.  An image popped up of a rotating, 3-D figure, roughly made out to be a mummy with its legs extended and its arms crossed over its chest. There was a general outline around its form to give the image of flesh and blood, while a skeleton was clearly visible within. "This is the Pharaoh of the tomb," Takashi traced the outline with his finger. "It took us a while to build this model, but with the help of X-rays and the other scans you can see almost everything about his physical form; he was a young male, about five foot four, weighing perhaps 100-120 pounds when alive. DNA samples showed that he was quite healthy, anywhere from 15-18 years of age at the time of death. The black dots and the streaks you see around him are just jewelry and pendants in the linen wrappings that we have not yet been able to remove. And then there--"

"See here?" interrupted Wilson suddenly, deep voice more of a growl. He leaned over poor Mokuba to point at the screen, typing with his other hand to zoom in. The image zoomed down to a portion of the mummy's torso, right under his arms.

Anzu gasped.

Clearly visible, even on this rough digital scale, was a gaping hole straight through the corpse's abdomen. 

Jou and Honda backed away instantly, looking slightly green. Mokuba's eyes widened in both horror and fascination. Ryou winced. Yugi looked away, praying his yami hadn't seen.

Sugoroku took this in rather well, leaning closer toward the computer with a furrowed brow, "What is that, some kind of wound?"

"Yes, but not a battle one," stated Wilson matter-of-factly, typing away as data began to fly beside the image of the mummy. "You see, it was too clean of a cut and well-aimed, straight through the vital organs. There was very little struggle if any at all, and the body had no other wounds, revealing that he did not defend himself."

Heavy silence.

"Holy--" whispered Mokuba, the first to realize. "Was he...?"

"--murdered." finished Wilson for him, grimly. 

Immediate silence.

"He. Was. _Not_."

Many pairs of heads and eyes turned to focus on Ishizu, who had, up until now, remained silent and hidden in the shadows. She stepped forward, chin high, flames in her blue eyes. "The Pharaoh was _not_ murdered."

"Oh, and I suppose you have a better explanation, young lady?" challenged Wilson, crossing his arms, an equally challenging look in his eyes.

Ishizu pursed her lips, narrowing her eyes. "Sacrifice." 

Wilson stared at her like she had grown scales. "What? Human_ *sacrifice*_?" He scoffed, eyes wild and furious. "Bullshit! The Egyptians had no history of such a thing, especially none performed upon their own _kings_!"

"There's a first for everything," whispered Ishizu, deathly calm. Despite Wilson's towering height, she stood tall and proud, slender body tight and taut. Her gaze never wavered, meeting Wilson's evenly. "But he was not _*murdered*_, do I make that clear? "

Tense silence.

Everyone else shifted uneasily. Jou looked from Ishizu to Wilson and back, nudging Honda nervously. Anzu looked ready for another one of her friendship speeches, though she was too timid to start. Mokuba still stared at the computer screen, too used to this sort of thing to be bothered.

A few edgy moments later, Ishizu was the first to relax, though not to back down. Gently, her voice betraying nothing and her gaze still fixed upon Wilson's, she murmured, "Go on, Takashi. Show them the face."

Takashi, who had been watching this battle of wills with worry, immediately cheered up. He quickly redrew attention to himself, adding on to his former explanation about the advances of modern technology. They could now take CAT and MRI scans to build a computer model of the mummy's skull, then use the science of anatomy to digitally add muscles and skin to make a reconstructed face of the dead. It has worked amazingly well, apparently, and now the scientists were hoping on using it in this major project to pave the road for all of archaeology. "We were hoping to perform this on Tutankhamun or Ramses II first, but this particular tomb was just so _facina_--"

"Show them the goddamn face, Takashi," Wilson broke in finally, apparently fed up with his employee's gibberish. He turned away from Ishizu, fury all but radiating from him. 

Ishizu seemed smug.

Takashi stopped talking immediately, mumbling an apology. He turned, bit his tongue and typed away.

In an instant, the 3-D scan of the mummy's body disappeared, replaced by a bald head rotating slowly around the screen. It was, undoubtedly, the head of a boy, and a quite handsome one at that. His eyes were large and exquisitely shaped, open though devoid of any pupils. His lips were small but shapely, tightly drawn in a neutral expression. His nose was delicate and small, in good angle with his sculpted jaw and his elegant neck. He was _beautiful_...  

"Oh my god..." Yugi felt his heart stop. Literally. His breathing went frantic. /Yami... Yami, are you seeing this?!/

He felt his yami stir, growling irritably as he connected once more with Yugi's body. /What is it, aibou?/

Yugi gulped, unable to tear his gaze away from the computer screen. /Yami... That's you./

~*~*~*~*~*~

[1] - 'The Great Place' was the ancient Egyptian's name for the Valley of the Kings, burial grounds for the Pharaohs of the New Kingdom, including Ramses II and Tutankhamun.

[2] - Er, I suppose Sugoroku's just old and senile here. Its probably fairly easy to figure out that the 'angel' that saved him is the same 'spirit' that came out from the Puzzle, but I suppose Sugoroku doesn't understand magic any more then Kaiba does. Plus the only glimpses ol' Gramps here --or anyone else, for that matter-- caught of 'Yami' was, by my theory, in the shadow realm, meaning that Kaiba, Sugoroku, Mokuba, and Pegasus are the only 'outsiders' that had ever seen the actually SPIRIT of the Puzzle before without him in Yugi's body. To me, Pegasus was the only one that had a good, long look at Yami, so no one else really remembers what he looked like.

[3] - This might be hard to believe, but this computer thing is true. Nowadays they've done lots of scanning with Egyptian mummies and managed to actually 'remake' the faces of those long dead by taking the skulls and digitally adding muscles to it. The newly discovered mummy now suspected to be Queen Nefertiti underwent this, and the mummy's reconstructed face --which seemed amazingly alike to the busts of Nefertiti-- was on the cover of a recent science magazine (I didn't read the article, but she looked mad freaky, in a pretty way O_o). More often then on royalty (I think anyway) Egyptologists also try to scan in the faces of more common Egyptians; they rebuilt the face of a girl who had died for some attack to her legs, as well as the faces of a few men. I read this in lots of ancient Egypt books and found it VERY fascinating. :-p

~*~*~*~*~*~

AN: Hm, hope that was more interesting then the second chapter. Arg, sorry this is taking so bloody long to develop the plot. This chapter was probably just as crappy as the last, I know. -_-;; Ugh, the wording was really awkward. I keep trying to alternate between names and 'she' and 'he' and 'the Pharaoh' and stuff, but I don't think it flows. -_-;; My LA teacher would kill me. 

NEXT UPDATE: Yami gets his body! Yay! *cheers* And there's a fluffy moment in Kaiba's dream and another one when they finally meet! And after that, things heat up for our favorite bishonens and the fun can begin! :-p So don't abandon me here!


	4. Yearnings Of The Heart

See? SEE?! *points to unknown reviewer who wisely did not put his/her name* THEY THINK THIS STORY SUCKS!! *pout* Okay, u know wut, wutever. I'm writing this right now not for CWM's sake but cuz I'm bored as anything and I need something else to focus on besides hyperbolas and hydrochloric acid and Antietam. -_-;; Sorry, this is the week before spring break and I am dead tired; had THREE (count 'em, THREE!!) papers from 4-10 pages long due, TWO projects, and FOUR FRIGGIN' TESTS! AAAUUUUGGGGHHHH! Oh well, spring break will hopefully rejuvenate me. :-p (Anyone else in high school has my pity; for my college buddies, *RASPBERRY*) If I take a while to get the next chapter up, its cuz its under major revision from its first draft and I haven't had a chance to work very far into it. *SIGH*

I'm getting stranger and stranger reviews by the minute. O_o Can't reply to them all, but I haven't gotten a real flame yet (I think ^_^;;) and I would like to thank you all for reading and dropping your responses back. :-p Glad you guys like it so far and thanks for trying to convince me that this story doesn't suck compared to CWM. -_-;; Er... do I really have to type out Jounouchi? *whine* Augh, its so hard on the fingers... Besides, Jou's so cute of a name and I luv using it. Plus it sounds like "Joey", which is the dubbed name I'm more used to even though I've take up Japanese names for the heck of it. Hm... Most of you had some pretty interesting ideas and some pretty curious predictions, most of which were close; for those of you that mentioned something about Yami AND Bakura getting their bodies back, you're absolutely right! Bakura's actually going to play a bigger part then it might seem in the beginning; I actually had to force Bakura/Ryou relationship in there (u can tell I'm not really trying) cuz of something that's gunna happen to Bakura at the very end. Nothing terribly, really, cuz I luv our fave little ickle thief to death. *GLOMP* (He'd kill me for that comment, I know...)

EMERGENCY NOTES (to some old buddies): (again, I'm SO sorry if I didn't include you here or in actual reply to reviewers; these are only reviews/notes/emails that demand absolute replies or otherwise I don't sleep kind of thing. ^_^;; I'm so sorry if you feel left out! Don't worry, I read EVERY LAST ONE of my reviews, so if I didn't mention you above or below, don't sweat cuz I got the message. :-p)

**DALEE** - omg I'm so sorry! I've been so busy the past weeks that I STILL haven't gotten to your emails (I didn't get to much of anyone else's either -_-;;) and I wasn't sure when you were coming back cuz you typed 'April 29th' as your return date. AUGH I have a lot to rant off to you about but it might take me until the actual vacation to have time to reply. SORRY!! But um, thanks for reading the story no matter where you were! (where were you again? ^_^;;) Oh, and I got lots of cool s/yy stuff (stories and pics and doujinshi's galore!) to share w/ you once I get the chance. :-p

**MISS SERA** - dude, don't pop anything ^_^;; Its okay that you didn't find this story; its off to kinda a rough start, so nothing special. :-p Thanks for liking it though... 

**HIGH PRIEST SETO** - O_o;;;;;;;;; Sugoroku/Yami...? Er... that wasn't _quite_ what I had in mind for this story but uh... interesting suggestion. ^_^;; lol in my opinion there's NEVER enough s/yy out there. :-p

**BLUESEPTEMBER** and **TWILIGHTHUNTER**- can't thank you enough! *blissful sigh* you two know so much and u have all the best yami/seto stuff... thank you!! 

**DUO'S ONLY CHICK **- er, don't worry, I'm slow sometimes too...

+++Chapter Disclaimers+++

~Featured is one of my favorite songs in the entire world; _Once Upon a December_, from the animated Anastasia. Its *so* sweet and beautiful and really describes the pain of having no memory and no past. (Yeah, I know, I'm a dork and I'm like seven years behind the times, but I like being a dork, okay?!) ANASTASIA DOES NOT BELONG TO ME.

~Also featured is a random little thing from Moulin Rouge that I felt like tossing in; _One Day I'll Fly Away_; the lyrics are mainly in two big chunks that I stuck in whenever I felt like it. ^_^ Don't mind, but it applies pretty well... MOULIN ROUGE DOES NOT BELONG TO ME.

~~~~~~~~~~  
/.../ = mindlink connection (between aibou's and yami's)

'...' = personal thoughts

... = translated ancient Egyptian 

//...// = thought speak (for gods only; assumed to be Egyptian but understood by all)

"..." = spoken dialogue (if in English, assumed to be Japanese)

_lots of italics_ = dreams/flashbacks/visions

**bold** = song lyrics

[ ] = footnotes

AN = author's note  
~~~~~~~~~~

~*~*~*~*~*~Yearnings of the Heart~*~*~*~*~*~

It was raining.

Again.

Yami sat, liked always, against the windowsill, his eyes immeasurably sad as he peered out through the torrent of water sliding down the window pane. He used to be fascinated by such a sight --for rain was fairly rare in Egypt-- but since Domino was a rather rainy city, he had long lost interest. Still, he had been sitting here for hours, well into the night, mainly from lack of anything to do or anyone to talk to. Sugoroku snored down the hall, and Yugi was quietly sleeping in his bed, having gone to bed early after being thoroughly exhausted.

Yami turned his gaze slightly, watching his cherubic hikari sleep under the mountain of blankets, nothing but a mass of brilliant hair and a lump in the bed. Watching the boy's deep breathing rhythmically raise and lower the sheets, the spirit smiled sadly. Deep sleep was a good sign. Yugi needed his rest, after all; the poor child had gotten so little in the last year or so that it seemed to have accumulated into this constant weariness that not even Yami's magic could fully hide.

Besides, they've all had a busy week. 

Within moments of leaving the museum, Yugi had been unable to hold in his secret, blurting it abruptly to Ryou and Sugoroku when the three of them were waiting for a taxi. Yami had been too distressed and too shocked to pay attention to their reaction, though he dimly realized from the safety of his soul room that Yugi spent the next few hours doing lots of explaining. Briefly, overwhelmed by the need to pace, Yami separated from the Puzzle only to meet Bakura in the living room, who had apparently went there to escape interrogation.

Bakura's eyes were, for once, mellow and distant, and he was curled up on the Motou's couch, radiating a strange amount of fear and uncertainly that all but matched the Pharaoh's. It was then that Yami heard Ryou's voice from the kitchen, excitedly; Bakura's body, like Yami's, was in that experiment room.

For the longest time, Yami stood there alone with Bakura, unable to find anything to say or do.

It was funny, really... All this time... _All this time_, both of them had wished for nothing but their own bodies, for some spark or remembrance of the world that they had loved but now had left behind --Yami more then Bakura, most of all. But now that the spirits had abruptly found their old bodies, it seemed neither one of them knew what the hell to do about it.

**Dancing bears...  
Painted wings...  
Things I almost remember....**

**And a song  
someone sings  
once upon a December...**

Leaving Bakura alone without another word, Yami went back into the Puzzle, mind drifting aimlessly. He could feel his aibou's excitement through their bond, and many times felt Yugi trying to coax him out, but he refused, pretending to rest. Eventually Yugi went to sleep, both worried and hysterically happy.

How could he not be? After all this time, Yami might have a chance to find out about his past. His _real_ past, not just the blurry images that Ishizu's Necklace painted out for them. And after all, the Pharaoh's tomb had finally been open, and by sheer chance --or Ishizu's doing-- his body now laid just across town.

Then why, _why_ wasn't Yami happy? By all means, the Pharaoh knew he _should_ be... but he wasn't. In fact, he was downright _terrified_.

He got gotten so used this double-mind thing... so _used to_ walking through walls and being ignored that he had long accepted that as what he was, some undead parasite upon the living. The distant memory and the mere _thought_ that he once had a body of his own, complete with flesh and blood and hair like Yugi's... Well, the idea was close to absurd.

Had he truly been... _a boy_ once? A boy with arms that could wave and legs that could run and maybe a mouth that would stretch into a grin? A boy like Yugi, like Jou, like Mokuba...? A normal guy like everyone else in this gods-forsaken world?

Yami shook his head, shuddering though he had no body to tremble. He was frightened, he admitted it. He had been totally unprepared for this. Saving the world? No problem. Kicking some evil gargantuan butt? Hell yeah. Meeting your own decomposed body? Eh... a little harder to accept.

Now that he knew his tomb had been opened to the world, Yami had absolutely no idea what to do. What, should he just storm in there and claim rightful ownership of all his stuff? Probably could, but the stuff was nothing but a bunch of historical antiques anyhow, and now he was no longer ruling Pharaoh so therefore he had no true use for any of it.

He watched as a flash of lightening danced across the sky, blurred and distorted by the waterfall of rain pouring from the sky. He was tempted to run out there now. Run out there and get soaked in the rain and feel utterly great about.

But he could not.

With a scowl at the world, he let his gaze wander to the book by his foot that Yugi had been so kind of leave open. With a little bit of magic, the spirit opened it to a certain pull-out page, a full-length snapshot of one of the most important keys of Egyptian history; the Order of Kings. Pharaoh Seti I and his Crown Prince, Ramses II --who would later go on to become one of the greatest of ancient Pharaohs-- once made a list of all the Pharaohs that had ruled before them, save a few rebels that they felt did not deserve acknowledgement. [1]

Yami's sharp gaze wandered down the long pull-out, taking in the faded cartouches until he reached one that had been crudely circled by Yugi's marker.

_Darkness_...

That was his name. Here was blatantly _proof_ that he was once a breathing, moving living being like Seti and Ramses and all the other Pharaohs. Obviously, he once had a body. 

Key word; _had_.

What about now?

Acquiring a body had been a goal so foreign and distant to Yami that he had all but deemed it unreachable. For thousands of years, he had been fine without a physical form, using magic to manipulate the world to his every whim. True, it was a false sense of living, but it was a damn good one since no one could stand in your way.

_Still_... 

Still, he could not fight off the occasional wave of loneliness that haunted him from time to time, that horrible feeling of being utterly ignored by the outside world when he saw Sugoroku hugging Yugi good night, or brushing aside his grandson's hair, or kissing the boy on the head. And Yami wished that... that just _once_... maybe Sugoroku could hug him too, and touch his face so softly like he did with Yugi, and maybe ruffle his hair affectionally before he went to sleep.

But even if Sugoroku wanted to, that would have been an impossible task. After all, to the material universe, the ghost known as 'Yami' did not exist. Sometimes, feeling his aibou's hunger while the boy was doing homework, Yami would go downstairs to get a snack only to find his hand going right through the fridge. Or after a bad nightmare, Yugi might seek comfort in his yami's open arms only to find himself face-down on the floor. 

The Pharaoh hugged himself lightly, taking in a shuddering breath.

How long has it been since he's touched another? Better yet, how long has it been since another touched _him_? When was the last time a father bounced him happily in his lap or a friend patted his shoulder in reassurance? When was the last time he was openly embraced by arms that could touch him or was even kissed by lips that could meet his without going through? 

Ra, how long has it been?

**Someone holds me safe and warm  
Horses prance through a silver storm...  
Figures dancing gracefully  
across my memory...**

**Someone holds me safe and warm...  
Horses prance through a silver storm...  
Figures dancing gracefully  
across my memory...**

Yami reached out with a shaking hand, brushing it lightly across the windowpane. His fingers met it gently, though the contact just an illusion for he felt nothing except a slight twinge in his sixth sense telling him that he had met some sort of physical barrier. With a shuddering breath, Yami pushed his hand further, watching it disappear straight through the window and into the storm outside, though he could not feel the chill nor the rain. Withdrawing his hand quickly, Yami felt his heart throb, though he knew that that organ ceased to exist a long time ago. He looked at his fingers, flexing them; wretched things they were, the model of perfect grace and beauty though he could see right through them. Absentmindedly reaching out to stroke the window again, the spirit let out a long-tortured sigh. How he longed to feel that cold, smooth surface under his fingers... To feel the raindrops splatter on his fingers and to breath the cool air blowing in front the vent above his head. 

But he could not.

Yugi stirred, mumbling something in his sleep, kicking away the blankets. For a moment the boy shifted back and forth before snuggling into his pillow, curling his legs up and shivering in the cold. He never woke.

Frowning, Yami stood, stepping over the Egyptology book to walk to his aibou's side. His feet left no imprints on the carpet. Choosing to ignore this observation, the Pharaoh kneeled, watching Yugi carefully for signs of awakening. When pleased to find none, Yami reached over to re-cover his precious hikari, settling the thick sheets over the boy's shivering form, tucking it gently around the tiny body. It was not his fingers but magic that moved the blanket, though Yami took a little comfort in the illusion that it at least _looked_ like his fingers were doing the work.

Sighing and kneeling once more, Yami settled himself down by Yugi's head, stroking the boy's angelic face. 'Poor child...' he murmured dryly to himself, '...getting stuck with me of all people.' He course, he wouldn't trust any other spirit with Yugi either, but he knew it had been hard on the boy to be put through so many traumatizing experiences just because of some grumpy spirit who refused to remain dead.

Yami didn't know how Yugi could stand him. Their first meeting was less then remarkable, with Yami almost blowing Yugi to bits in alarm when he was so rudely awaken. After that, it was all downhill. First, Yami went around killing everyone because he didn't really know how to do anything else. Then Pegasus kidnaps Sugoroku and drags Yugi and his friends into this big mess at Duelist Kingdom, while Marik and Noah came in to the play to create even a bigger mess. Of course, Ishizu and Shadi created their own messes, and having Bakura tossed into the mix didn't exactly make Yugi or Yami's lives any easier. 

And Kaiba... Well, Yami didn't know _what_ to make of Kaiba. Formerly a High Priest and now possibly the most powerful man in the world, the CEO was sometimes an ally and sometimes a foe, depending on which side he felt like leaning toward. He was, most of the time, dubbed as an ice cube whom cared for no one and nothing, and yet sometimes he would sit in the back of the class, stroking his card locket in clear longing for his little brother. To say the least, the man was confusing. Fascinating, in Yami's opinion, but very confusing.

Mortals were all so confusing...

And yet, through all the Pharaoh's eccentricies, little Yugi showed remarkable strength of heart. Willingly giving up his soul and life on multiple occasions, he cared nothing for himself, something that had bewildered the long dormant Pharaoh sleeping in his body.

How _strange_ these mortals were...! They laughed when facing death, and cried when they were happy. Some openly sought out risk and danger, while others were out there saving the planet and hugging trees. Others announced war on each other for no reason, while some sought out self-exile. Some, like Yugi, would give up anything to protect others, against all scientific reasons stating that the only goal of organic organisms was to _survive_.

Yami shook his head, using a little magic to brush some of Yugi's hair out of his face. He would never understand them, these mortals. His hikari especially, Yugi being such a remarkable and complicated boy.

The spirit continued watching his young charge for a while, a cheerless smile upon his face. He was lucky, he knew. Very very lucky. Perhaps Yugi didn't know it, but Yami had been terribly vulnerable those first few days after his awakening, in which he spent trying desperately to figure out what he was doing here in this strange and unfamiliar world. Had anyone else found the Puzzle, he or they or both of them would have been utterly destroyed. Still, no one but Yugi had the patience and the heart to teach him how to laugh, how to care, how to joke... even if he had no mouth to do so.

But there was one thing Yugi couldn't help Yami with, even though the poor boy tried his hardest to.

Yami felt a rising wave of frustration and despair within him that was becoming now getting far too familiar. Wrenching himself away from Yugi, the spirit buried his face in his hands, thin shoulders shaking. 

He couldn't stand this any more! Just once, just _once_, he wished he could hold Yugi like the son and little brother he never had. Just once he wished he would touch the cold windowpane or feel the tiny impacts of rain droplets upon his skin. _Just once _he wished he could bury himself under some covers and sleep a long, well-deserved sleep. 

Just once, he wanted to _know_, damnit! He wanted to know his home, his family and...and the past that he could no longer remember. He wanted to know the faces of those ghostly figures that he always imagined or the name of the ancient buildings that he always saw or the face of the father that he knew he had or the voice of the mother that he knew he once loved... Oh, he wanted to know _so many things_...!

Yami let out a sob, clutching his head. Damnit, if only he could _remember_!

**Far away...  
Long ago...  
Glowing dim as an ember...**

**Things my heart  
used to know...  
Things it yearns to remember...**

It took him just a few minutes to reach a shaky decision, and a rather risky one at that. He would go see Ishizu. It wasn't like he's never done it before, though it had always been with Yugi's body. Still, while he might be bound to the Puzzle and his hikari, that didn't mean Yami couldn't wander away from them for a while, did it?

Standing with renewed determination, the Pharaoh took a moment to compose himself even though it was futile since no one could see him anyway. He hesitated, soaking in the sight of Yugi, who slept peacefully on. He hated to leave the boy alone, even for a little while, but with the Puzzle by the boy's head, the yami would be alerted of any trouble and could teleport home instantly if needed. Plus, if he didn't see Ishizu and get some answers, Yami was afraid that Yugi's room wouldn't survive another cleaning.

Yami took a deep breath, heading for the door. He hesitated briefly, glancing back at Yugi's angelic face as a clap of thunder lit up the room. /Sleep tight, little hikari.../ the spirit whispered, sorrowfully, /Sweet dreams.../

**And a song  
someone sings  
once upon a December...**

~*~*~*~*~*~

Puddles were fascinating. At least Yami thought so.

There he stood in the middle of the street, an invisible spirit dressed in ridiculous white PJ's, skipping and stomping into puddles only to watch with great disappointment as his foot barely stirred the water. Sighing, heart heavy, Yami stuck his hands into his pants only to realize that the illusionary PJ's had no pockets. Growling irritably, he continued down the street, glaring at the gloomy world around him not so much that it was dreary but because he simply couldn't touch it. Again and again, lightening and thunder lit up the sky, revealing an empty, flooded road devoid of living creatures, pedestrians or cars. Dark alleyways separated the passing buildings, shadow all but dominated their walls.

Yami wanted to laugh. He could fit out here nicely. 

/What are you doing, Pharaoh?/

Yami tensed, cursing himself for not sensing an intruder. True, the growing distance between him and the Puzzle were limiting his pours, but he still should have sensed _something_. He stiffened, head high, form taunt. /I should ask you the same thing, tomb robber,/ he all but hissed.

Bakura came up next to him, looking equally ridiculous in a huge, earth-tone T-Shirt with SAVE THE TREES planted squarely on the front. Yami raised an eyebrow. At least Yugi had the decency to wear pants.

/Don't you say a _word_. Stupid hikari has stupid tastes,/ snorted Bakura, poking at the shirt irritably.

Yami made an 'o' with his mouth and said nothing else, continuing down the street at a steady, light pace. He was startled to find Bakura following him; he expected the other spirit to run off to kill some stray cats or something, or at least bug him for a while before turning to go set something on fire. The Pharaoh tensed again, bristling with magic just in case he needed it. /...Why are you following me?/

/What's it to you?/

/Oh, its just that normally you don't follow 'idiot Pharaohs' around like some sniveling dog./

Bakura sent him a dangerous glare. /...Where are _you_ going?/ he asked finally, avoiding the issue.

/What's it to you?/ echoed Yami, loving word games.

/...So you're going there too, huh?/

Yami paused, somewhat bewildered. Was Bakura bluffing or did he seriously just figure out where his destination was? /So where are _you_ going?/ he demanded.

/Same place you are./

Silence.

Yami pursed his lips, but quickened his pace.

No other words were exchanged. They both knew and felt the same thing, helpless to do anything but respond to the growing urge within them that called them to the museum. Inside that Ra-damned building were precious bits of the world they had both left behind and, as much as they hated to admit it, the bodies they had long abandoned.

It was rather ironic, Yami thought. Three thousand years ago, he was the highest of the high and Bakura was the lowest of the low, but now they were the sole survivors of the same dead world, reduced to wearing ridiculous clothes while walking barefoot through a stormy night in a foreign city, worst of all _with each other_.

Yami laughed to himself, drawing a weird look from Bakura. 'My, how times have changed...'

~*~*~*~*~*~

"...They are coming..."

"...Are you sure?"

"...Yes..."

"Good."

~*~*~*~*~*~

The museum was dark and empty, but that meant nothing to spirits who had thrived dozens of centuries on this type of environment. Since they had no human eyes, both yami's could see fine in pitch darkness, meandering around with ghostly grace and ease.

They found the exhibit easily, passing straight through artifacts and solid walls without bothering with the doors. Somewhere along the way, Bakura drifted down a different corridor, obviously uncomfortable with spending more time with the Pharaoh then he already had. Which was totally fine with Yami himself, who himself was growing uncomfortable to the strange silence that had settled between them. He hadn't expected Bakura to join him tonight of all nights, and in the dead middle of a storm; worst still, the tomb robber was oddly passive, barely peeping a single insult. Then again, that was how Yami himself felt; there was no point in small talk and pointless ponderings when there was so much to do and so much on their minds.

His train of thought was abruptly derailed when he stepped into the main chamber of the exhibit, sensing that there was a large object that had not been there before. Meandering his way around with small tendrils of magic, Yami cautiously stepped over the jewelry and artifacts that laid scattered about, intent on respecting --of all things-- his own stuff despite the fact he couldn't disturb them anyway.

The newest addition of the exhibit was, apparently, a huge sarcophagus, located just below the guarding form of the infamous model-mannequin.

Yami stiffened instantly, fearful to go any closer. No Egyptian --save embalmers and some priests-- was ever to be close to a sarcophagus. And no sane Egyptian would _ever_ want to disturb the dead, especially their sacred bodies. And judging by the size and the sheer amount of valuable metals and gems engraved upon it, this was a royal sarcophagus, containing --no doubt-- a member of royalty.

By process of elimination, that must be _him_.

Very suddenly, Yami's mind shut down. He was terrified.

He dimly realized that scientists must have moved the sarcophagus here and replaced the body after they were done 'experimenting', though he half wished it was locked away in those lab lockers so he didn't have to face it. Now faint magic was emitting from the inside of the coffin and Yami suddenly recognized it as his own signature aura, despite the fact that it was very weak and worn down by time.

Most interesting. 

For a long moment, he stood perfectly still, petrified to the spot. If he had organs, his stomach must be doing gymnastics. Yet he still couldn't bring himself to move.

Finally, Yami took a deep breath, cursing his sudden meekness. This was not the time nor the place to be _weak_, of all things. Not that it mattered, since Bakura was elsewhere and he was completely alone. His pride slightly reassured by this, the spirit managed to take one step closer, flinching nervously as he did so. In an instant, he was bombarded by the empty threats of ancient spells which, much to his amusement, had already been deactivated. 'Must be Ishizu's doing...' 

Eventually, shy and hesitant as a lamb, he edged his way to the sarcophagus's side, glancing briefly up at the mannequin towering above him before gulping and redirecting his gaze downward.

He sensed a thin glass case covering the sarcophagus and another inside it, protecting four alabaster canopic jars that guarded the coffin's sides. [2] Inwardly shuddering, Yami's gaze soaked in the jars the jars briefly before his eyes moved on, nervously. He could make out that the sarcophagus was open, revealing gold coffins fitted neatly within each other, each one lidless with their respective lids place beside the sarcophagus. 

Yami felt himself shiver as he peered over them and down... down... down...

And then he saw it. His own body, almost fully unwrapped now, devoid of anything except a thin layer of ancient linen which failed to cover the face. The corpse was hugely dehydrated and decomposed, the limbs little more then black, resin-dry skin on bones. His head was just as strange looking, all but a skull with sunken, rotting flesh on it, what few strands of hair remaining faded to a pitiful bleached gray. 

But his face...! Decomposed as it might be, it still bore hints of a strong jaw and a button nose, completed with thinly arched eyebrows and full lips. 

Utter revulsion was Yami's first reaction, but fascination and astonishment kept him firmly in place, leaning over the mummy like some star-struck child. It was... well... _skin-crawling_ to see your own face staring up at you, but at the same time, Yami was somewhat relieved to find his former body was in one piece, not blasted into atoms as Bakura once told him.

'Ra-damned, dirty-talking _liar_,' he mumbled to himself, beaming with some akin to pride. Disgust put aside, he noted that his embalmers had done a rather good job; despite the unavoidable decomposition of muscles and the obvious discoloration of the skin, the body looked... okay. Pathetic and bald, unfortunately, but not bad. For a dead corpse, anyway.

Unable to resist, the spirit gently put one hand against the glass and pushed, passing through it easily. Biting his lip, Yami reached in further, inching his hand along the edge of the sarcophagus. He took note that his fingers were shaking. 

Time seemed dragged on forever.

Yami's nonexistent heartbeat quickened as his hand reached ever closer to its destination. 'Ra...'

Already he could feel a change. His aura was stronger here, next to the mummy's skin. Gulping, not yet touching it, he brushed his fingers through the air over the body's torso, soaking in the ancient tendrils of his own magic that still radiating from the corpse. The feeling was... _indescribable_.

Yami suddenly wanted to break down and weep. So he _wasn't_ dreaming! Here, now, before him in its entirety, was his very own body... and up until now, he hadn't realized just how much he missed it.

"Oh...!" Caught unprepared, one of his fingers accidentally brushed the mummy's left hand. Startled, Yami quickly retreated his hand, expecting some great explosion or his ancient body to explode in bits.

When nothing of that sort happened, the spirit released a shaky breath, tentatively replacing his hand on his physical one, sensing with magic the rough linen under his fingers and the stiff, dried digits that were once his. /My gods.../ he whispered to himself, dazedly trailing his touch upward over the mummy's arm.

Numbly, he was distantly aware of a chanting that now rose to his attention, radiating from the touch he now shared with his body. The enchanted words were soft but distinctly Egyptian, uttered from the lips of many ancient men and women, though Yami noted that his own voice was not within the mix.

It was a _spell_.

_A spell for the dead._

Ra, was... was this it? Was he _remembering_...?!

Yami didn't dare to hope, but he couldn't prevent his hand from trailing higher, over the mummy's neck and to its face. A shudder ran through him, his breath coming quick and shallow. 

The chanting rose feverishly now, magic crackling in the air, though whether it be from the mummy or himself, Yami couldn't tell. They were blessing him, these voices, whispering to him the dream the undying lands that awaited after Judgment, wishing him well on a journey that they all knew he would not complete. 

Yami was stunned. Could it be...?! Could he be hearing what his own body heard in its last moments before it was locked away within the sarcophagus for a lonely thirty centuries? Could he... could he be hearing his own *burial*?

Then, quite suddenly, the chanting stopped.

Complete and utter silence.

Yami shuddered, eyes glazed over, breathing coming in pants. 

Pharaoh... It was a young man, in his prime and strong by the tone of it, calling to him in their native tongue, whispering sadly to him as he must have done thousands of years ago. 

Magic pulsed with his words.

My Pharaoh ... There came a soft sound, more like a grieving sob then anything else. Ghostly fingers brushed Yami's forehead, an enchanted touch many centuries old. I will wait for you...

~*~*~*~*~*~

Yami wasn't aware of what happened next. He felt a distinct tearing sensation and a powerful blast of magic that ripped violently through his very being. 

He screamed.

Then, he felt nothing. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Yami came to awareness swiftly, disorientated and alarmed. He was blind, mute and deaf, stuck somewhere dark and very uncomfortable. There was the strange sensation of shifting organs in his torso, accompanied by countless waves of strong magic that threatened to overwhelm even him.

Suddenly, he was aware of another sensation, one that he had not felt for many millennia. It took him a few seconds to identify.

Pain.

He was in _pain._

In fact, he was in a great _deal_ of pain. Something was squeezing painfully at his flesh, so tightly that, despite his best efforts, he couldn't breathe. Or move, for that matter.

He was _mummified_ *_alive*_.

Somewhere in the mist of his rising panic, Yami realized that he had a functioning tongue. So he did the only thing that he could think of doing.

He screamed.

There suddenly came the sound of a hard impact above him and shattering glass pouring over him, two alarmed voices rising with the sound. Strong hands shot out of nowhere now, holding down his struggling form, tearing at his constricting binds with blades and bare fingers.

_Air_! Glorious, free _air_! 

Yami's scream died off only because of his overwhelming need to breathe; he inhaled again and again, almost sobbing as his dry throat burned in protest. His lungs, too, screamed out, cries and coughs tearing wildly from his chest.

His arms were soon freed, and they lashed out uncontrollably, muscles spasming in panic and pain.

Hands greeted his own, allowing his fingers to clasp frantically on to theirs, pulling him upright. Warm arms held on to his shaking shoulders, cradling him gently as he shuddered and cried out in agony.

Easy, your majesty... Easy... cooed a warm voice, the words soft and soothing.

The unique sounds of his native tongue, though distinctly recognized, were garbled and distant when they reached Yami's ears, his hearing ringing painfully from even the slightest sound. I... Wha--? he panted, his tongue mangling even the simplest of syllables.

There was a rip and the last of his binds were torn; a relieved sob rose from Yami's throat, a panicked, animal-like sound.

Can you breath? his savior asked him gently.

Yami trembled against the arms that held him, trying desperately to catch his breath and calm his racing pulse. Y-Yes... The word didn't _quite_ come out like he wanted it to, and he stopped abruptly, embarrassed and confused.

An amused chuckle came from above, though the small sound rang painfully in Yami's skull.

Are you alright? asked a second voice gently, much deeper then the first.

Yami numbly nodded, biting his lip as his neck muscles jolted in sharp pain. The feeling wasn't so much agonizing as it was unfamiliar. Pain...Ha, _pain_...! He hadn't felt pain in so many years...! 'What's going ON?!' Yami wanted to scream again, more out of total and utter confusion then anything else. What _were_ all these... these _weird_ sensations?

In desperation, he tried something he hadn't dared to do up until now; he opened his eyes.

Easier said then done.

His eyelids felt like dead lead weights, and only after his third attempt did they painfully separate to allow him a little peek of the outside world.

He was met by light so bright that it immediately blinded him, his eyes tearing as he shut them tightly again. Letting out a choked gasp, Yami cowered in his savior's arms from the sheer amount of stimuli that had bombarded him.

Come on, your majesty... That's it...

Carefully, slower this time, Yami's sore eyes opened once more, peeking meekly at the outside world, blinking rapidly as if awakening from deep slumber. His blurred vision swam, doubling what he saw as if he was peering out from under a current of water.

Everything was white. Far too white.

Yami winced and squinted, tearing in the effort to keep looking.

The light slowly soaked into his eyes and things began to focus. It was all fuzzy and undefined shapes at first, with contrasting dark and light making up a rather crude black-white image. Then, gradually, the dark began to define itself, molding into somewhat familiar shapes, some of its shadowy hue turning lighter or darker then others.

Yami felt his breath quicken.

Color... _He was seeing color_!

Though his vision still swam, he was able to make out a bronze-hued oval shape with two dark blobs in the middle and a dark mass surrounding it. The Pharaoh blinked in disbelief. I-Ishizu...? he squeaked, trying desperately to make out the face. 

The woman only smiled at him with a blurred mouth.

A second face joined hers, a man's, peering down from above with tears in his eyes. Welcome back, your majesty...

~*~*~*~*~*~

Yugi awoke with an unholy shriek. A very loud, hysterical shriek that immediately awoke Sugoroku and half of the city. 

_Yami was gone_.

Simply _gone_. Even if they weren't communicating, the spirit's presence was always there in the Puzzle, a kind of warm glow that always reassured Yugi no matter where he was. But now the spirit was just... not there. As if he had simply _vanished_. 

Yugi curled up in bed, shaking so bad he could barely control himself. And still, he screamed on, in such a panic that he could barely form coherent thoughts. He had grown so attached to Yami's presence that this sudden emptiness within him was totally and completely _terrifying_.

Sugoroku scrambled in, rubbing the sleepiness out of his eyes as he fumbled for the light switch. "Yugi!" Flinging himself to his hysterical grandson, the old man found the small child spasming in his arms, trying to push him away with failing, blind limbs. "Yugi! YUGI!"

Realizing who it was, Yugi flung himself at his grandfather, sobbing and screaming at the same time. "He's gone...! He's gone!" he cried, nearly tearing Sugoroku's PJ's in two with his tiny fists.

"What-- Who's gone!?"

At that precise moment the phone rang.

RRRRRRRIIIIIIINNNNNNNGGGGGGGGG.

Yugi went suddenly quiet, trembling like a leaf, violet eyes huge and teary as they bore into the phone. Sugoroku looked down at him, baffled, then up at the phone, frowning. Gently, slowly, he disentangled himself from his grandson's limbs and stood shakily, taking a deep breath as he picked up the receiver.

Expecting some psychotic maniac demanding ransom, he was pleasantly surprised by a soft, respective voice. "Mr. Motou, I'm sorry to call so late. May I speak with Yugi? This is urgent."

Bewildered, Sugoroku peered suspiciously at the phone in his hands before handing it to Yugi, watching as the boy leveled it with an equally suspicious stare. "Its for you."

The boy seemed more petrified then panic-stricken now, and it took him a few moments to gain enough control of his shaking hands to receive the phone. "H-Hello...?"

"Yugi, this is Ishizu. I--"

"ISHIZU!" Yugi went into hysterical mode again, sobbing. "Ishizu, Y-Yami's _gone_! I don't know where he is and--"

"Shhhh... Calm yourself, child..." Ishizu chuckled softly. "You needn't worry; Yami's fine. In fact, he's with me."

Stunned silence.

"...WHATDAYA MEAN HE'S WITH YOU?!" 

"I'll explain later. Listen, I need to ask you a personal question."

"...Um, okay..."

"... What size are your clothes?"

~*~*~*~*~*~

"You have to be quiet," Ishizu explained softly, "And try not to move too quickly; they get alarmed quite easily." 

"'T-They'?!" echoed Yugi, teeth chattering as he pulled his soaked jacket tighter over him. He and his grandfather stood in the middle of the museum, dripping wet and still dressed in their PJ's. They had driven over as soon as they could, but they hadn't exactly taken in their own health to mind until now.

There was the sound of hurried, slopping footsteps and they turned to find Ryou scrambling in through the museum doors, as undressed and wet as they were. He, however, had the sense to grab an umbrella. "I'm here, I'm here!" he panted, looking around with as much distress and bewilderment as Yugi. "Where's Bakura!?"

Ishizu smiled at them, then brought a finger to her lips, shushing them all. Turning, she motioned for them to follow.

They passed through a dimly lit hallway into a dark, small room, the heater blasting and turning the air stifling hot. Three figures were huddled in the corner on a make-shift couch, one tall and standing, the other two curled up pathetically in blankets. Through the dark, one could see a bush of tri-colored hair and a mass of silvery-white hair. 

The standing man looked up when they entered, gray eyes sparkling.

"..._Shadi_?!" whispered Yugi in disbelief.

"Who?" echoed Sugoroku.

The turbaned man smiled back at them, nodding a silent greeting. He motioned them closer, one of his hands drifting downward to rub comfortingly on one of the huddled forms by his side.

As if on cue, the Puzzle and the Ring went nuts. The Ring's pointers were spinning off all over the place, some pointing at Ishizu, others pointing at Shadi and the last spinning off in random directions. The Puzzle glowed and quivered excitedly, flashes of brilliant light escaping between the cracks of its pieces.

It lit up the room in momentary flickers, the dazzling light made the two sitting beings wince and look away.

Yugi's breath froze in his throat. "It couldn't be..."

The form that Shadi had been so tenderly caressing looked up cautiously at the sound of his voice, glazed crimson eyes blinking blindly in his direction. 

"Aibou...?" The voice was raspy and dry, carrying a hint of an exotic accent as it formed the Japanese word carefully and slowly.

"..._Yami_...?" whispered Yugi, frozen in place with eyes impossibly wide.

Ryou squeaked then fainted dead on the spot.

Silence.

Now both of the huddled forms looked up curiously at the newcomers, the white-haired one making a strange sound that sounded like a pathetic attempt to laugh. He --assuming it was a he-- seemed focused on Ryou's prone form on the ground, pointing at it excitedly in a clear effort to mock. Shadi sent him a glare, then went to revive the fallen boy. 

Hesitating only briefly during this strange episode, Yugi found himself flying at his yami, sobbing when he hit a warm, solid chest. They could _touch_! Oh, how he had dreamed of this...! "H-How--?" he whispered, patting the other madly, making sure that he wasn't just imagining this.

Their bond flared back to life, stronger then ever, an overwhelming wave of excitement, confusion, and hysterics pouring in from both sides. The Puzzle was glowing intensely now, almost as happy as they were.

"_How_?" Yugi clung to Yami's chest, snuggling into it, openly weeping. "Oh, Yami, i-is this for _real_...?"

He looked up, finding teary, wide crimson eyes gazing down at him. His breath froze at the sight. True, he had seen the spirit in their soul room and in spiritual form, but he had never seen any eyes so... so _beautiful_, so ageless...! The sight was just... _incredible_...

"Aibou...?" whispered Yami quietly, obviously still in disbelief. Hesitantly, slender, trembling fingers reached up and brushed against Yugi's forehead, stroking the skin lightly as if he had never felt anything quite like it. "Oh, Yugi...." the Pharaoh breathed, a hesitant smile forming on his lush lips, crystal tears suddenly overflowing his watery eyes.

"Y-Yami...? Yami, why are you crying...? " whispered Yugi in amazement, reaching up in turn to brush aside the tears. "What is it...?"

Yami smiled a brilliant smile through his tears. "You feel warm, Yugi... _You feel warm_...!"

~*~*~*~*~*~

~~~**DREAM**~~~

_The angel always had a fascination for his eyes. Kaiba really didn't know why, but nevertheless, the beautiful boy always brushed aside his bangs to see them, smiling with open admiration and curiosity at their sparkling cobalt depths. Quite a few times he motioned for Kaiba to lower his head, brushing tender lips against the CEO's eyelids as if he was placing some eternal, sacred blessing against them._

_Kaiba never complained; if anything, he had been quite flattered. His eyes weren't often described as so much beautiful as they were frightening, their stunning and rare shade of aquamarine always striking terror into all that fell under their gaze. No one but Mokuba ever said they were beautiful, and Mokuba --being so used to his brother's unique traits-- never said much about it in the first place._

_Tonight was no different from any other. The angel cuddled in his arms, slight fingers trailing up and over every inch of Kaiba's face like a blind man trying to form some mental picture. Every so often, the slender digits would brush over the CEO's brilliant eyes, trembling with delight as they fluttered closed, allowing his touch to continue wherever it wanted to. The boy' s rosy lips twisted upward with satisfaction and contentment, as if deeming this exquisite man as his own._

_Kaiba chuckled, brushing his lips faintly against the tip of the angel's fingers, reveling in the boy's soft coo. "You touch me too much..." he mumbled against those fingers, planting a dainty kiss on each finger tip._

_The boy pulled away playfully, a mock pout on his face so cute that it could have put Mokuba to shame. His eyes twinkled with mirth, their radiant, fiery hue rivaling the deep ocean-blue of his companion's own eyes. _

_Kaiba melted like putty. He came toward his angel with wide arms like some love-sick Romeo, intent on wooing and kissing the boy senseless._

_To his surprise, the boy turned away from him, sticking out his tongue and sending just one last furtive look over his shoulder. Touch me if you can, his large eyes giggled before he took off in a blur of white and gold. _

_The element of surprise had Kaiba standing there like a statue, blinking in annoyance and disbelief._

_Then, with a playful roar, he chased after his angel, dashing through the silk veils and leaving the white world behind. The chamber was brilliantly hued but dark, giving away the boy's position as he darted about its depth, a flash of white against the murky depth of the room. He was surprisingly fast, a blur of silver behind a pillar, a flash of gold around a statue, sometimes a twinkle of grape-red eyes peering intensely from the shadow. The boy's twinkling laughter filled the air, echoing all around Kaiba as if he was darting from place to place faster then the speed of light; one moment by the man's shoulder, the next giggling at him from beyond a distant pillar._

_Kaiba wasn't sure if he was running too fast or if the room itself was spinning, but he found himself lost in a swirl of color, pillars flying past him at unimaginable speeds, mist dancing happily around his ankles as if intent on tripping him._

_Next thing he knew, he was pinned against the ground, his angel sitting victoriously on his waist, hands pressing down firmly against the man's broad chest._

_Caught you, the boy's eyes clearly exulted, grinning broadly as he lowered his face down toward Kaiba's, their noses almost touching._

_Kaiba flinched; even in dreams he didn't like being beat._

_The boy cocked his head curiously at this strange expression, never having seen it on his love's face before. He immediately rolled off the CEO, eyes suddenly wide and frightened like a guilty child who had done something horribly wrong._

_Kaiba fought the urge to laugh, quelling down his stubborn side. Eyes smiling on their own accord, he let out a soft sigh and raised his arms to cradle the back of his head, squirming into a restful position. "You won, angel... Touch me all you want," he whispered, eyes closing serenely._

_There was a moment of hesitance before he heard the soft rustling of silk, a slight, warm body crawling on his chest once more. Lips twisting upward, Kaiba fought down a silver of excitement, fingers tingling to just reach out and snag that beautiful body above him. _

_To his surprise, a slender hand snaked behind his head to claim one of his hands, bringing it up until it touched something smooth, warm and soft. _

_Kaiba peeked open his eyes, his breath stopping dead in his throat._

_The boy seemed intent on winning back his favor, purring as he rubbed his cheek against the CEO's palm, eyes closed in bliss like that of a cat being stroked. Sensing Kaiba's hesitance, the boy opened his eyes to look down at the man, blinking. Touch me, his eyes pleaded. _

_"Will you allow me to...?" whispered Kaiba softly, eyes unnaturally warm as he sat up, shifting the boy to his lap, holding him as close as a valuable doll. _

_The boy flushed at their new position, nodding even as he cuddled against the taller man's chest, cooing his delight._

_"Then I will..." purred Kaiba, tilting the angel's head up and lowering his own to kiss the boy soundly._

~~~**END DREAM**~~~ 

~*~*~*~*~*~

"Big brother, guess wh--?" Mokuba trailed off, eyes widening.

Kaiba laid limply on his bed, slim body curled limply under the sheets, long arms tossed over his eyes as if some invisible source of light was blinding him. He was a pathetic sight, his chest rising in shallow pants, tears clearly rolling down his cheeks. A whimper that sounded suspiciously like a sob passed from his lips, a feeble, tiny sound.

"Big...brother...?" questioned Mokuba hesitantly, horrified. He _knew_ something was wrong! Big brother never slept in this late! "Seto...?" Voice now a choked whisper, Mokuba crept closer, stomach wrenching upon itself. He reached out with a trembling hand to touch his brother's shoulder, appalled to find the skin moist and burning hot.

The teen never reacted, sounds of soft weeping continuously escaping him.

Mokuba bit his lip, scrambling out the door and gently closing it behind him. Then, all but running to his room, he picked up his own phone with shaking hands. "Yugi? I'm going to have to call you back... I-I think I have to get a doctor."

~*~*~*~*~*~

It was getting harder now... Harder to wake up from his heavenly dreams to a cruel, lonely reality. Kaiba knew it and feared the consequences. Already, for far too many days, he had to drag himself up to go to work only to nod off in the middle of a meeting, backlogging himself on desk work afterward. The sub-conscious loneliness he continuously felt made itself known in an abnormal amount of built-up frustration, including one episode where he literally threw his cup of coffee at his secretary when she came in without knocking. 

Plus he always felt like crap. 

Needless to say, his employees gave him far more space then usual.

"Uunnnnggghhhh..." Kaiba moaned, fighting down nausea when he shifted his head. His headache spiked at that precise moment, making his ears ring and his mind spin painfully. Unconsciously, his arms tightened around his head until it almost hurt.

How long has it been since he awoke? It could have been hours for all he knew, but time meant nothing in his half unconscious state. Lord, nothing mattered anymore...

**I follow the night...  
Can't stand the light...  
When will I begin  
to live again...?**

**One day I'll fly away...  
Leave all this to yesterday...  
What more could your love do for me?   
When will love be through with me?**

"Big brother...?"

The voice sounded so soft and distant, and yet the mere sound of it made Kaiba's eardrums throb.

'Who is that...? Mokuba...?' Kaiba tried to reply but his body refused to obey him, his lips chapped and stuck firmly together. A wave of agony ripped through him and a groan tore from his throat. 

Bloody hell, where was the pain coming from? The dreams hadn't bothered him terribly until recently, though now it seemed they were on some kind of warp speed, quickly accelerating in their pace to addict him. The drawbacks to such a 'high'? First weariness, then headaches, then frustration... and now there wasn't one part of him that _didn't_ hurt.

"S-Seto...?" Mokuba sounded scared, but his voice was so blurred that it was hard to tell. "Seto, if you can hear me, there's a doctor here to check you out, okay...?"

'Doctor? DOCTOR?' screeched Kaiba silently in utter outrage. A low growl made his displeasure known, but if anything, it made his head throb even more. 

There was the distant sensation of pair of small hands embracing one of his larger own, squeezing it tightly. "Seto, please, I know you don't like doctors, but you're really sick and--"

"I'm not sick." The words took all his effort to form and say, but Kaiba managed it. They came out an octave too high, though.

Mokuba couldn't find a reply, but the doctor did. "Of course you aren't, Mr. Kaiba. Your younger brother merely wanted you to have a check up."

Kaiba snorted, still refusing to budge from his position. With considerable effort, he pulled himself into full consciousness, dimly aware of Mokuba's warm body against his side and the weight of a larger man leaning on the side of his bed.

A hand much larger then Mokuba's touched his elbow, and Kaiba involuntarily jumped at the foreign contact. "Don't _touch me_," he growled. 

"Big brother!" exclaimed Mokuba, "Hold still! _For me_?" There was a pleading tone in his voice that no one could resist, though Kaiba tried his darnest.

He failed nevertheless. Sighing, the teen swallowed down his rising indignation and allowed one of his arms to be taken, wincing as sunlight filtered in through his eyelids.

The doctor, an elderly man who had long knew both brothers inside out --literally-- sent Mokuba a soft thank you before gently cradling Kaiba's long arm in one hand, pulling out a small syringe and a kit that followed it. In moments he had taken three small containers of blood samples and proceeded to take blood pressure and heart beat, hesitantly only briefly before pulling aside the sheets and parting Kaiba's shirt.

If the boy was annoyed any more by the chilliness of the doctor's instrument or the clear violation of privacy, he didn't show it, holding perfectly still though with a distinct frown on his thin lips. The doctor glanced up briefly to find that, somewhere under the other arm, Kaiba's infamous blue eyes had yet to open. Which was fine with poor old man, since that icy gaze was perhaps the most feared one in all of Japan.

"Well, Mr. Kaiba," he say finally, "You seem fine." Mokuba's suspicious glare was met with only a sincere shrug. "If we get any strange lab results from your blood, we'll notify you immediately."

An annoyed grunt was his only answer.

Pleased to escape with his head, the doctor uttered a gentle goodbye and turned to leave, suitcase and coat at hand.

"Wait!" Mokuba scrambled after him, catching him in the middle of the hall.

"Yes, little one?" The doctor's eyes were warm but tired as they peered down at the boy.

Mokuba bit his lip, his eyes darting nervously in the direction of his brother's bedroom. "H-He's been having really bad headaches lately... and I worried if there's anything... y'know..." he looked down, flustered, "...maybe wrong with his _brain_?"

The doctor blinked, then rubbed his beard thoughtfully. He sighed. "Mokuba, mostly likely its nothing. Others who work as hard as your brother are very prone to headaches."

"But big brother's not _like_ the othe--"

The doctor chuckled, kneeling to look the boy in the eye. "Mokuba, the only way we can check his brain is if he gets in an MRI or a CAT machine, which I doubt he would do so willingly." He shook his head. "But we'll see." Patting the boy reassuringly on his shoulder, the doctor stood and turned to leave. "Good day, little Kaiba. Keep him off as much work as you can, but if it gets worse, tell me."

Mokuba watched him go, biting his lip. Then, with a dejected sigh, he turned to go check on his brother. He squeaked when he realized Kaiba was standing at the doorway of the main bedroom, blinking groggily at him and leaning on the doorway for support. "Seto... You... shouldn't be up!"

Kaiba glared at him with narrowed blue eyes, though the threat behind them was empty and rather disorientated. "You, imp, are not in any position to confine me to bedrest."

"You have months of free vacation time," Mokuba argued, rushing hurriedly to his brother's side in case the tall man took a tobble, "You can rest for one day."

"I will _not_. I have--"

"--too much work." Mokuba stood before his brother with his hand on his hips, burning flame in his gray eyes that matched his brother's. "You are going to _relax_, you hear?"

Kaiba would never admit it, but the intensity radiating off Mokuba suddenly made him uneasy. "I--"

"--_Promise_ me, Seto." Mokuba turned on the puppy eyes, complete with a perfect little pout and that evil little twinkle in the corner of his eyes.

Kaiba knew he was a doomed man. Tugging uncomfortably at his silver pajama's, he hung his head to avoid Mokuba's gaze. "Fine."

"Good." The shorter boy grinned broadly, looking entirely too smug.

Kaiba grumbled irritably under his breath. "Too cute for his own good, damn little--"

"Language, big brother, language!" 

~*~*~*~*~*~ 

Later that day, Mokuba was finding it hard to confine his brother in _any_ space. The boy managed to ban all laptops, pens, and cell phones from his brother's grasp, but was quite helpless when the CEO insisted on getting up and about.

But that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. 

With an playful grin, Mokuba innocently sat across the table from his brother, who was intent on reading the newspaper, that being one of the few things he was allowed to do. "Hey big brother, you need to get out more."

"Mmph."

"You know what? Yugi called this morning."

"Hsh."

"He wanted us to go over to his house."

At this Kaiba snorted. "'Us'?" he echoed in clear disdain.

"Mm-hmm. He said he had a surprise."

Kaiba made a sudden face, either because of his dislike of the word or he needed more aspirin. Maybe both, since he got up and headed for the closest bathroom. Mokuba noticed that there was still a slight sway in his steps.

Frowning at the observation, the younger Kaiba pouted. "Its not like Yugi's going to bite your head off," he chirped after his brother.

"No, but that accursed other half of him will."

Mokuba's frown deepened. "But we should go, Seto. I told him we would."

A muffled, irritated voice came from the bathroom. "Was that before or after you saw me this morning?"

"Er... before, but I still think we should go!" Mokuba suddenly grinned. "Did you just admit you were sick?"

"For the _last time_, I'm not *sick*, Mokuba." There was great emphasis and disgust on the word, followed by the pop of a capsule being opened and, moments later, the sipping of water.

"Fine. Be that way. But I'll only believe that if we go."

Sighing in annoyance, Kaiba hung his head over the sink, taking in a deep, shaky breath. He wasn't 'sick'.

He was just lonely.

**Why live life from dream to dream?   
And dread the day when dreaming ends...**

**One day I'll fly away...  
Leave all this to yesterday...  
Why live life from dream to dream?   
And dread the day when dreaming ends ...**

~*~*~*~*~*~

Kaiba's usually brilliant blue eyes were rather grumpy and dull as they gazed through the dark window of his limo, just a half an hour after Mokuba 'convinced' him to come with him to the Motou Game Shop. He didn't want to go. He hated going. Hell, he wasn't in the _shape_ to go, though he would never admit that.

Mokuba watched his brother silently during the car ride, taking in the weary and limp way the CEO slumped against the door. That wasn't normal. But for the sake of avoiding another argument, Mokuba said nothing until they got to their destination. Then, unable to resist, he chirped out a gleeful, "We're there!"

Kaiba groaned, clearly not as ecstatic. Shifting his heavy head, he pushed himself up to his usually rigid position, fixing his trench coat to respective smoothness just in case the blond mutt opened the door without permission like he was prone to do. When there was no sign of the limo being forcibly opened, Kaiba peered cautiously out the window.

There was quite an commotion at the Game Shop, a bunch of kids gathering at the doorsteps, chatting excitedly; there was the mutt, the friendship girl, the guy with the one-spike hair, the dice-obsessed freak, the albino British kid, the blond girl that the mutt liked, and the mutt's little sister.

'Oh, joy, the lovey-dovey crew,' thought Kaiba with a low growl.

Mokuba, on the other hand, scrambled over his lap and out the door, chirping out greetings.

The gang welcomed him happily, then excitedly shoved him into the middle of their group.

Hoping that they weren't about to eat his brother live, Kaiba sat there for a while in awkward silence, unsure of what to do. Finally, coming rather cheerfully to the decision that no one was desperate for his presence, he closed the door and simply waited for his little brother to reappear from the friendship cult so they could leave.

No such chance.

In a flash, Mokuba --then Jou-- was by the window, pounding on it repeatedly and excitedly, yelling something impatiently though that was thankfully blocked out by the sound-proof windows.

Kaiba raised an eyebrow, very tempted to just pretend he wasn't here and let them freak out over his car. However, Mokuba frowned in the beginning of his infamous 'look', and unable to resist another pout-attack, Kaiba sighed and brought down the window.

"Yo, money-bags, what took you so long?" demanded Jou as the darkened window slid down to reveal a piercing, arctic glare. 

"Big brother, you missed it!" cried Mokuba, eyes sparkling. "OhmygodYugisaidthatYamiwenttothemuseumand--" He went on and on at light speed, motioning excitedly like some mime on drugs.

Kaiba watched him with a raised eyebrow, catching something about 'body-snatchers' though he understood very little of it all.

Then he saw something very... very... _strange_.

Where there was once one albino-kid there was now two, one clearly taller and more tanned then the other, smirking at him with a clear swagger --or it could be a unbalanced sway-- in his steps, his shorter 'twin' nervously at his side.

And where there was one Yugi there seemed to be... two.

The gang parted to let Yugi through, the boy grinning wildly when he saw the CEO's eyes widen in clear disbelief, his eyebrows flying toward the heavens.

Standing unsteadily by Yugi's side was an exotic-looking boy that could have passed for the tiny duelist's elder brother, had Yugi had one. However, the newcomer stood a good few inches taller then Yugi, skin almost bronze when compared to Yugi's pale cream. His hair was much like the Motou's traditional style, only with wild, brilliant blond streaks through the dark spikes. The boy's body was delicate as it was small in shape, slim limbs incased in black leather so tight and revealing it should be illegal. Long, shapely legs dangled teasingly in front of Kaiba's face, fluid muscles all but invisible under the expanse of the boy's smooth, dark skin.

Blue eyes widened and all color drained from Kaiba's features.

The boy looked up shyly, blinking huge, scarlet eyes at him. Fiddling with his hands, he flushed bashfully. "...Hello, Kaiba."

~*~*~*~*~*~ 

[1] - This list of kings made by Seti I is indeed a real list and is very beautiful; basically, there's an engraving of Seti I dressed as Pharaoh with Crown Prince Ramses by his side, holding a scroll. Past that scroll are a very long list of cartouches, perfectly lined up and covering the whole entire wall. Supposedly this one of the most accurate list of Egyptian kings ever!

[2] - Canopic jars --as anyone who had seen 'The Mummy' should know-- held the vital organs of an embalmed Egyptian mummy. Each jar had lids shaped with the heads of the four sons of Horus (which I'm not including cuz I'm making Horus single in this story :-p), each one guarding either the lungs, the heart, the liver or the intestines. These organs were removed during embalming by a cut in the left side of the abdomen, and the cavity they left was filled with resin and cloth to keep the mummy in good shape. 

~*~*~*~*~*~

AN: Aw, didn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside? ... or more willing to kill the authoress instead? EEP! *hides* Hm, lapsing into this not-so-short-but-not-too-long chapter phase. (20-pg stuff compared to CWM's average of 40-pg... Not bad. Less stressful and probably easier on the eyes. :-p) Hell of a cliffie though, eh? HA, I promised they'd meet, didn't I? MHAHAHAHA! Don't mind me, I planned that little "hello Kaiba" thing a really long time ago and I'm really excited I got to use it. But I had lots of fun writing this chapter; it took lots of work, so you better as all hell REVIEW!! And I swear, now that they've officially MET, Seto and Yami are going to have lots more fluffy moments planned for them. Sorry it took so long! I'm surprised you stuck with me this far... -_-;;

Oh oh oh!! **ME HAVE SOME WONDERFUL NEW STORIES TO SUGGEST** and keep you busy with while I struggle w/ the next chapter. All of these stories are s/yy in some way or other; seme seto generally. (PLEASE don't be offended if your story isn't here!) Sorry, I'm too lazy to search for the authors or the html address so you're gunna have to search by title: 

~GAME QUEEN AND THEN SOME, by Borath (funniest, freakiest and one of the longest stories I've ever read; Yami gets pregnant --TWICE! I'm pretty sure this is the mother of all the stories w/ the whole fall-into-spring-turn-into-girl thing, but its far better then most of the sort I've read. O_o This story is so totally awesome, well-written, realistic and cute as anything. One of my fave stories of all time!! GO READ!! **I KNOW WHERE YOU LIVE AND I WILL STALK YOU IF YOU DON'T! I'm dead serious.** T_T)

~DOUBLE CHECK (basically an adorable fic about how yugi likes jou, jou likes yugi, yami like seto, seto likes yami, but poor jou's too dense to understand anything! O_o Very cute, highly recommended! Er... I apologize to the author cuz I have yet to review this story. ^_^;;)

~THE MAN OR THE DRAGON (O_o *twitch twitch* AUGH!! I'm not giving anything away, but this will get you *thinking*. A beautiful, freaky, very original story! Go if you need something to think about for the next few days or if you wanna fail classes cuz u keep thinking about it! -_-;; *sob* AND I STILL CAN'T DECIDE!!)

~THE YOUNG AND THE BEAUTIFUL (YGO soap opera revolving around Yami/Seto!! *squeal* Its so goddamn CUTE!! And long... but at least its updated a lot!)

~KITE (hahahahahaha parody of all the suicide-attempt yami/seto stuff; u won't get the joke until you read the second chapter :-p)

~SEDUCTION OF ICE (by one of my email buddies, Duo's Only Chick; wonderful take on the blackmail-seduction type of thing, plus its daringly naughty)

~MY ETERNAL ROSE (by another email buddy, vegeta, one of the best known yami/seto authoresses around; all her stories are WONDERFUL and I suggest you check them all out if u haven't already) 

NEXT UPDATE: (timing unknown cuz **next chapter is only partially written and under MAJOR revisions**) awkward moments in new body, Yami blushing too much, and lots of er... thoughts from Seto and Yami about each other (kinda pointless stuff really... more of the stupid I-hate-him-but-he's-pretty-damn-cute kind of thing -_-;; But stick with me anyway! I'm so afraid to lose readers! *sniffle*)


	5. Gifts

TO ( ): look, whoever you are, **STOP FLAMING ME**. Or, in other words, **shut the hell up**. I don't CARE if it was a joke or what not, but _its not fucking funny_. Look, I never understood you people; why the bloody hell are you reading my story if you don't like it or don't like ygo or don't like yaoi or WHAT? If you can't stand the story, then either stop reading or don't read at all! If you don't like yaoi, DON'T READ IT! If you can't stand fanfiction, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING ON THIS WEBSITE THEN!? What, you think its FUNNY to insult people? You have a sick sense of humor, you bastard. 'Constructive criticism?' I don't consider 'reveling in your stupidity' any kind of constructive criticism; if you wanted to imply that this story was going down the wrong path, either leave a nice suggestion or just don't review and go bother someone else. Its not *too* hard to just stop reading the story if you don't like it, unless you don't have a high enough I.Q to push the goddamn back button. Oh, plus, if you actually paid attention, I mentioned myself that my notes were long and could be a story all by themselves, but its not too hard to just ignore them and go on to the story, right? (which you most likely didn't read either) Plus I was trying to help those people wanting more s/yy stories so if you actually took an effort to GLANCE at my notes you would have found some good s/yy stories to read, but, since u hate my notes, you lucked out. Look, simply put, I don't take lightly to flames. They annoy me and aggravate me to the point that I'm flat out cursing, which I don't like to do. So for future reference, you S.O.B., **LEAVE ME ALONE**. And if you're going to insult younger or beginning authors or any authors at all, do me a favor and go play in traffic.

THAT GOES TO ALL FLAMERS. Consider this a first and last warning. Next time I'm turning on the review filter and, though I'd miss the anonymous reviewers (who can always get an account) I wouldn't have to deal with you bastards anymore.

*WHEW* Okay, sorry, that's been bugging me since day 1 of Ch.4's update. *twitch twitch* The flame was the second review I got and, duh, I haven't been taking it well. Unlike some people (like Orange-Lemons :-p you go girl!) I don't take flames very well at all. BUT THANK YOU TO ALL THAT LIKED THE LAST CHAPTER!! I haven't gotten such great reviews for a while! *squeal* *tear* A big giant hug (since Blue wanted one :-p) to all my loyal fans, email buddies, idols, and yahoo-group peeps. *MASSIVE GROUP HUG* I feel so happy. :-p Thanks so much you guys! I'm actually starting to recognize a lot of names cuz they keep popping up, and I'm so glad you guys keep up with my work. Means a lot, really. ^_^ 3

Ahem, as for some vague, name-less replies.... No I don't use 'Atem' or 'Atemu' cuz a, I'm too used to 'Yami' to let go of it, b, Atem is an Egyptian god in my mind, and c, I don't think the name goes very well with 'Seto' either. O_o Lol heh heh I'm sorry I left you guys hanging. I got some pretty impatient fans over that last cliffie, I see... ^_^;; (Lightening Sage, LOL thank you so much for the wake-up call... Best April Fool's joke I've had this year. :-p) I see many of you are eager to see what happens to Yami and Seto... Heh heh. ^_^ I'm not saying a word. Well, just one; Kaiba doesn't remember his 'angel's' face. :-p Keep that in mind. I'm not about to make a story THAT flat out forward and make Kaiba all of the sudden match Yami w/ his dream. :-p Sorry to disappoint anyway.

EMBER ELIDD - Oh, you poor dear...! Um, email me at alquawen88@yahoo.com and I'll see if I can email what you can't see, okay? Or maybe... since you can't read updated chapters... I'll find *you* instead. ^_^;;

ORANGE LEMONS/TASSY- heh hi! Lol thanks for the toast. I, erm, don't drink, but wut the hell, I'll take a swig anyways. :-p Of COURSE I'd put your story down! Its one of my favorite!! As for the idea thing, don't worry about it. I wasn't offended and I didn't really mind; I was more flattered. ^_^ I was really just curious as to if I really did guess right on the manga or this was all just a big coincidence (I tend to think like that cuz I'm paranoid occasionally ^_^;;). But you're welcome to take ideas any time as long as I know it. O_o Um... as far as I know... I think you ARE the 100th reviewer, but I can't really tell cuz the counter's always off and the reviews aren't number. ^_^;; But in case you are, congrats and thanks!

~~~~~~~~~~  
/.../ = mindlink connection (between aibou's and yami's)

'...' = personal thoughts

... = translated ancient Egyptian 

//...// = thought speak (for gods only; assumed to be Egyptian but understood by all)

"..." = spoken dialogue (if in English, assumed to be Japanese)

_lots of italics_ = dreams/flashbacks/visions

**bold** = song lyrics

[ ] = footnotes

AN = author's note  
~~~~~~~~~~

~*~*~*~*~*~Gifts~*~*~*~*~*~

Kaiba's eyes hit Yami like a slap in the face. They were the color of clear blue diamonds, a vibrant, rich hue that matched the depths of the ocean. Narrowed and intense, they were as cold and reflective as arctic ice, revealing nothing but a clear, incisive distain. And by Ra, those eyes were _beautiful_... 

When the CEO's piercing gaze shifted to him, it was all Yami could do to stop his knees from buckling.

It was funny, really. Up until now, the Pharaoh only saw the world through Yugi's eyes, though generally he could care less for what he saw anyway. For a spirit who cared about much higher things, little pleasures like colors and shapes meant nothing. After all, the yami's learned a long time ago never to trust what you see; possible danger lurks behind every smile and every friendly wave. And despite their hikari's coaxing and teachings, Bakura and Yami still held on to this belief, greeting everything and everyon with wary suspicion. And now that the spirits had their own bodies and a new set of senses, there was all the more reason to distrust. 

RA, but Yami never imagined this... Until now, the Pharaoh never understood why others feared the CEO's gaze, for he himself --being nothing but a spirit-- had been immune to its charms. He never feared to look Kaiba dead in the eye, and he never cowered under its glare like the others.

But now... now with his own pair of functioning eyes... now that he peered into the very dreaded eyes of Seto Kaiba himself...

Yami melted like putty.

Something came to his mind then, something Mai once described Kaiba as a long time ago; "drop-dead gorgeous ". Of course, she called him a bastard after that, but that wasn't the point. The biological part of Yami's mind that had been missing for some thirty centuries ignited then, eagerly pointing out observations he hadn't noticed through Yugi's eyes. Kaiba's strong jaw, his elegant nose, his long neck, his silky hair, his sculpted body...

'Oh Ra, oh Ra, oh Ra...'

Yami felt sick. He had once the guts to challenge a teen magazine that dubbed the CEO "the sexiest man alive". But by all hell, the magazine turned out to be right. Right by a long shot.

For a dreadfully long moment, Kaiba did not utter one single sound. He eyed Yami up and down like a hawk, one eyebrow rising as a flash of rare emotion passed through his gleaming eyes. First surprise, then curiosity, then... then something Yami had very little experience in identifying. What was it, admiration? Fascination? Somewhere between the two?

The Pharaoh shifted uneasily under the intensity of the CEO's gaze. Feeling a flush of heat rise up his neck and on to his cheeks, the boy desperately tried to look away, scuffing a boot shyly into the sidewalk. "Hello, Kaiba..." he whispered, hoping to break the awkward silence that had settled over the area.

Mokuba, thankfully, took over for him, pointing excitedly to the resurrected boy. "C'mon, big brother, aren't you going to say hi?!"

Kaiba blinked owlishly, as if the thought never occurred to him. He tried to speak once but any words died on his tongue. He tried again, swallowing as he tried desperately to find his voice. When it finally came, it was rather strained and some half-octave too high. "Mokuba, get in the car."

Mokuba frowned, bewildered. "Wha--? But big brother--!"

Kaiba gritted his teeth, fixing the boy with his most stern glare. "We're leaving. Get. In. The. CAR."

Mokuba knew better than to risk his life. With a hurried goodbye, he scrambled in one of the limo's doors, wincing as he shut it quickly behind him.

"Hey, what's the big idea, hot-shot?" demanded Jou. "Mokuba can stay as long as he--"

"Look, mutt, we have better thing to do than waste time with you losers. And Yugi," Kaiba shifted his blue eyes toward the addressed boy, who looked slightly panicked, "Nice 'surprise'."

No one could tell if he was being sarcastic.

Before any objections were made, the limo's tinted windows rolled up with a whirl and the car speed smoothly down the road, a blur of white on the dark concrete. Jou was left sputtering at the vehicle's rear end.

"Yeah, 'hi' to you too, you bastard!" yelled the boy vehemently, taking a few running strides toward the disappearing limo. He glared at it for a few more minutes before sighing and deeming his cause dead, sticking his hands in his pockets and meandering back to his friends. 

To their surprise, he was smiling.

"Did you see his FACE?!" he crowed with a large, goofy grin, waving his arms, "Man, KODAK MOMENT!!"

He was awarded with a few awkward chuckles, though no laughter came from anyone except Bakura, who seemed in an awfully good mood. Yami didn't seem to notice, eyes somewhat vacant as they followed the disappearing limo.

The hikari's eyed their yami's worriedly, then shared a meaningful glance.

Ryou bit his lip, eyes twitching. "I better take him home before he does any more damage..." he mumbled finally, nodding politely to his friends as he rounded Bakura in the general direction of his house. "Good day, guys."

Yugi's large eyes followed the two nervously. Then, with a sigh, he then turned to Yami and was quite alarmed to find the former-spirit covering his cheeks. "Good Lord, Yami, what's wrong?"

Yami's eyes were wild when they shifted to Yugi, and for a moment his lips worked wordlessly around some unformed sentence. Than, in an instant, he was gone, scrambling back into the Shop.

Everyone blinked at each other.

Then, in a blur of bushy, tri-colored hair, Yugi rushed after him. "Yami? Yami, whats--?" His voice faded as the door closed itself.

Again, everyone blinked.

"Well, that went well..." commented Otogi awkwardly, rubbing the nape of his neck.

"Gee, you think Yami's oka--?" started Anzu, moving for the shop.

Mai stopped her with a hand upon the shoulder, shaking her head. "I think we should let them be. You see the way Yami reacted when I poked him? I thought he was going to have a heart attack! The poor guy's a nervous wreck!"

"Really?" Honda scratched his head. "I thought he was just ticklish."

Mai rolled her eyes.

"I suppose that's understandable," said Shizuka quietly, thoughtfully, "He didn't seem particularly happy surrounded by this many people, and Kaiba--"

"Screw money-bags, sis," broke in Jou with a face, "He's enough to make anyone suffer a mid-life crisis right then and there." He linked an arm around Shizuka's, grinning. "On the brighter side, I've got thirty extra bucks. Who's up for a round of celebratory ice cream?"

~*~*~*~*~*~

Hearing the din and chattering cease outside, Yugi turned to his yami, who was currently cowering on the couch.

"You okay?" the younger boy asked finally, brow furrowing. He sat down gently beside his yami, rubbing his back and turning off the blaring show that had been wailing from the TV. 

The silence was comforting, but Yami simply buried his head in his knees, drawing up his legs into his arms. Yugi could see that the back of the Pharaoh's neck was bright red. 

The hikari almost laughed. 'Oh, my poor yami...'

The Pharaoh has had a rather big --if not traumatizing-- day. Apparently the boy woke up in his own body and found himself locked in an air-tight container and completely mummified below the neck. Since there was very little oxygen in the chamber and that his newly regrown flesh was bound by linen meant to wrap a dehydrated corpse, Yami didn't have much fun in his first few moments. Ishizu and Shadi --Ra knows HOW-- rushed to the aid and apparently were so intent on getting Yami out as fast as possible that they resorted to good-old-fashion physical action; apparently Shadi took a chair and smashed right through the glass, though luckily, Ishizu had scrambled the burglary alarm. After ripping the ancient linen off Yami's body, the woman then had to run to go help Bakura, who had apparently found his own body and had been currently locked in an ice-cabinet in the middle of the experiment room. He nearly froze to death in there before Ishizu got to him, or so the tomb robber claimed; Ryou later found out that there was still ice melting in Bakura's hair. 

After the hikari's and yami's were reunited and Shadi awoke Ryou --after the Key was unsuccessful-- with a good ol' bucket of cold water, Ishizu calmly explained to the hysterical youths that the yami's old bodies had simply absorbed their respective spirit and was almost 'reborn' instantly with new, untainted bodies. When Ryou asked what 'untainted' meant, Ishizu turned to Bakura and drew upon his face a double-cross scar that now no longer existed. These new bodies, she explained, were completely based on their genetic identity and their age at death; no trait gained over the years of the yami's past lives were reborn. 

Shadi then added a much less cheerful note; these bodies were not all powerful. Immortal, yes --they could not age nor be harmed from abnormal body functions-- but they were vulnerable to infection, wounds and, if hurt, death. Yugi almost burst into tears upon hearing this, though Shadi reassured him that, if necessary, Yami could still teleport back into the Puzzle. Technically, all the transformation did was give him a physical form outside the Puzzle that could be seen and touched; if he returned to the Puzzle, the body would disappear with him only to reappear for use when it was needed. However, Shadi warned, while the yami's new forms were capable of as much magic as they had in their spiritual state, they were bound by the laws of physics. Therefore, no superpowers; no great strength beyond their muscles; no teleportation; and certainly no more invisible, passing-through-the-walls fun.

Bakura had been terribly upset by this. 

Ishizu, upon scolding him, explained to the hikari's that their yami's were highly sensitive and would be quite 'off' for the first few days until they adjusted to their bodies. At first Yugi wasn't too worried, but later at home, when the phone rang and Yami promptly blew it up, he took the warning much more seriously.

It was quite strange and almost comical to see Yami struggle like this. The first few hours were agony to the poor boy, who --upon reaching the Shop-- curled up in a pathetic ball on the bed, simply overwhelmed by stimuli bombarding his awakening senses. After that, he spent the rest of the night gulping down food and exulting in the wondrous miracle that was taste before he promptly threw it all back up again in the toilet. Exhausted, he then dozed on the couch, which excited him to no end when he awoke from his first true sleep in three thousand years. And since the rising of dawn, the Pharaoh has been nonstop buzzing around the house, touching everything he could and almost weeping in joy at every sensation. His speech, which had been somewhat warped in his first few hours, improved vastly as the clock ticked on, and by late morning he was babbling out nonsense in both Japanese and Egyptian, though Yugi took note that the Pharaoh still needed the help of the bond to speak Japanese since he learned it all second-handedly through Yugi's mouth. 

What has yet to fix themselves were Yami's balance and his coordination, not too surprising considering he had been out of practice for many centuries. Ishizu warned that it might be a few days more for coordination to kick in, and much to Yami's dismay, she wasn't kidding. It took him at least four tries before he could go up the stairs at half-speed, and even longer before he could manage a brisk walk down the hall without tipping against the wall. He often misjudged distances and tripped over something that he thought had been much further away, resulting in Sugoroku hiding every breakable object in the house. And sometimes the poor Pharaoh forgot that he was now a solid being and thus couldn't walk through walls, which he found out were just as solid as he was when he tried to take his regular shortcuts into the kitchen.

Yugi and Sugoroku weren't so much worried as they were amused. Still, they found themselves heading down a troublesome route. There needed to be a new bed and new clothes put into Yugi's room, not to mention some kind of excuse for the friends, teachers and neighbors who might grow suspicious if Yugi was suddenly and inexplicably cloned. 

However, Sugoroku himself was out right now, apparently trying to absorb the fact that he now had two grandsons instead of one. No doubt it was quite a shock.

"Yami?" Yugi lowered his voice to a whisper so not to upset his yami's delicate eardrums, "Are you okay?"

Silence. No answer.

Yugi sighed, shifting uneasily. "Are you alright?"

"Fine," muttered Yami finally, looking up with a wince. In a plain attempt to change the subject, he announced that he needed some milk and got up hurriedly, barely taking a moment to steady his wavering balance before shuffling his way to the kitchen.

Yugi followed closely, a grin on his face. Yami was such a horrible liar; he still had quite a lot to learn about his body. Apparently he had not realized that every thought that crossed his mind was betrayed his body expression, and therefore making him as readable as a book.

Watching with amusement as Yami nearly spilled the carton of milk all over the counter, Yugi saved them both a lot of trouble when he poured it all for him, pointing that the taller boy should sit at the table before he did any more damage. With an irritant pout, Yami did so, swinging his legs like a child and watching his bobbing feet with fascination.

Rolling his eyes, Yugi handed Yami the milk and sat across from him on the small kitchen table, one eyebrow raised. "Sooo..." He drew out the word in a very obvious manner.

"So what?" came the muffled answer, a goofy look on Yami's face as he savored the sensation of sweet liquid on his tongue.

"...Yami, don't kid with me; you're beet red. What's bugging you?"

Yami almost choked and dropped the mug. Patting his cheeks wildly, he was horrified to discover that his hikari was right. Flushing even redder, the Pharaoh looked away, sipping his milk meekly in embarrassment.

Yugi grinned, obviously enjoying this. "Sooo...." he emphasized the dreaded word once again, "...how do you feel about the others?"

Innocent enough question.

"They're... uh... awfully *touchy*," mumbled Yami into his drink.

Yugi rolled his eyes. "Duh, Yami, they're excited to finally be able to see you after all this time."

"But Jou...um..." Yami flushed redder than his eyes, "...He pinched my butt."

Yugi's eyebrows rose and he laughed. "It was a joke, Yami, don't worry. Besides, you're hot stuff."

Yami choked and coughed, then awkwardly settled the mug on the table, thirst clearly forgotten. "Pardon?" His voice came out an octave too high.

Yugi sighed. Right. He had forgotten. Yami and Bakura weren't quite... 'up-to-date' in terms of modern expressions. Which was quite amusing considering the Pharaoh and Jou had a huge debate about the origin's of 'O.K' earlier on. "Yami, flatly put, you're _attractive_."

Yami's eyebrows flew up to the heaven and he almost protested outright, though he found no deception in his light's twinkling eyes. He blushed faintly, coughing down his indignation. "Um... thank you."

Yugi shrugged, drinking some of Yami's milk himself. "You obviously haven't been told that in a few thousand years," he teased somewhat playfully.

Yami shook his head silently, his cheeks still colored.

Yugi grinned, "I'm just telling the truth, you know," he said light-heartedly, glad to see that Yami no longer seemed as pale or sick as he initially was, "Besides, I thought it was fairly obvious seeing how everyone looked at you."

Yami's gaze snapped up, eyes wild. "Yugi!" he cried as if he had been some virgin-eared darling who had just been revealed to the world's worst curse. 

The boy giggled. "What? Its true!"

Yami had now invented a new shade of red. "They were... surprised, that's all," he mumbled.

Yugi raised an eyebrow, laughing. "'Surprised'? To put it in the least, perhaps."

Yami frowned. 

Yami's left eye twitched. "What... What are you _implying_?" he said slowly and warily, eyes narrowing.

Yugi cocked his head, resting his chin on his clasped hands in an angelic pose that bore no more innocent than the devil himself. His violet eyes twinkled mischievously. "...I think you like someone." 

Yami blinked. "....'Like'?" he echoed, clearly unfamiliar with the concept.

Yugi smirked. "You know... 'like like', dummy." He formed a heart with his little fingers.

Yami eyed the symbol like it was some foreign disease. "What?"

"Dear Lord," Yugi rolled his eyes. "You _love_ someone, Yami. Admit it!"

Yami looked aghast and flabbergasted. Apparently the thought had not occurred to him and he didn't like it now that it did. "I do NOT!"

"Do too." Yugi grinned, resting his head on one hand now, casually.

"Do *not*!" sniffled Yami indignantly.

Yugi sighed. "News flash, Yami; its been some three thousands years since you last felt 'love', so I'm not surprised that you don't recognized it now. But then again... I've never seen the signs so obvious."

"...'Signs'?" 

"You, my dear friend, are clueless," stated Yugi flatly, continuing without missing a beat, "Yes, _signs_. Blushing like mad? Yup. Fast heartbeat?"

Yami gulped, nodding faintly.

"Butterflies in the stomach?"

Yami frowned, "Butterflies couldn't _possibly_--"

"Its an expression, Yami. Does your stomach feel funny?"

Yami bit his lip. He had only had his 'stomach' for a day, though he was pretty sure this gut-twisting gymnastics thing it was doing wasn't quite normal. He hesitated and nodded again.

Yugi echoed the motion, pleased and beaming. "Its love, alright. You've got a crush, Yami."

"I do NOT!" sputtered Yami for the last time.

"Denial." Yugi smirked, cocking his head. "Another sign."

Yami shut himself up before he fell further into this trap, though he glared venomously at his once-innocent little light.

"Girl or guy?"

Yami blinked, train of thought crashing. "Pardon?!" he all but shrieked.

Yugi rolled his eyes. "Guy or girl?" His smile was growing by the minute, radiating an aura of innocence.

Yami's eyes crossed briefly, stunned. "Uh..." He blushed. He hadn't really thought about that... Back in Egypt, homosexuality and heterosexuality were quite distinct, the former often frowned upon, but he doubted the commoners cared --or even knew-- which gender he preferred. Quite frankly, he didn't know either.

Yugi sighed when Yami didn't respond, the other obviously either in deep thought or utterly confused. 'Dear Lord, I am NOT explaining all this...' prayed the smaller boy, now wishing he never brought up the topic. He had failed to take note that Yami had not, *ever* in his long life, taken a health course.

After a moment of awkward silence, however, it seemed Yami suddenly hit his answer. His eyes flew wide and Yugi was rewarded by a sudden wave of color on the Pharaoh's already dark cheeks.

Yami squeaked something and buried his head in his hands, trying --in vain-- to stop the rising blush from spreading to his neck. "Guys," he whispered finally, voice tiny and humiliated.

Yugi blinked, cocking his head. "Really?" 'Strange...' He wasn't angered or outraged at all, though he expected Egyptian Pharaohs to be straight since they all had queens at some point --except for Yami, apparently. The small boy quickly grinned in reassurance when Yami winced at him. "That's nothing to be ashamed of, Yami... In Japan, anyway."

Yami sent him an odd look. "I'm going upstairs," he suddenly mumbled a bit too quickly, getting up clumsily to leave.

Yugi let him go, watching the taller boy's retreating back with sparkling eyes. 'Interesting...' Before, it had always been him on the lower end of their yami-hikari bond, always the one looking up to the other and asking for advice. But now that he was the more 'experienced' one, it seemed Yami needed _his_ help.

Which was an interesting twist on things.

'Very interesting indeed...'

But enough brooding. Yugi leaned back in his seat and sipped at Yami's abandoned milk thoughtfully, hearing his friends reenter the shop with ice cream in tow. 'Speaking of the gang... just _who_ is it...?'

~*~*~*~*~*~

Meanwhile, Ryou cowered in the corner of his living room, amber eyes wide in horror. Bakura stalked about the room, eyes blazing as he inhaled pixie sticks, poking everything in sight and occasionally squealing in glee as some of the more delicate objects crashed to the ground. He had been doing this for quite some while now, and it was scarcely better then what he was doing before, which had been consuming every scrap of food in the house. And, unlike the Pharaoh, the tomb robber apparently could keep it all in.

Needless to say, Ryou was frightened. The one thing he wished that would never come true just had.

Bakura had a body.

Ryou winced, hugging himself lightly and flinching visibly when a picture crashed into the wall. His yami had been violent enough as a spirit, using magic to both beat and manipulate his hikari when given the chance. But now that the tomb robber had his own solid body, Ryou feared for his own life. He doubted that he would escape with just a few bruises the next time Bakura threw a fit.

The hikari was snapped out of his musing when he saw Bakura by the kitchen counter, scourging the cabinets for more pixie sticks. The boy's eyes widened in horror as he saw his mother's old vase tip dangerously, the delicate flowers within flying off into space. He scrambled upward, hands outreached as he dashed forward. "Yami, you shouldn't--"

The hit came at lightening speed.

Bakura spun around in a blur of white and blue, elbow connecting solidly with Ryou's face.

The boy went flying back against the wall, his head connecting solidly with the wood. There was a sickening crack and a flash of white-hot pain before the boy felt himself sinking to his knees, vision wavering. The last thing he saw before sinking in unconsciousness were Bakura's wide eyes peering down at him.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Unconsciousness was, contrary to popular belief, rather comfortable. Like deep, deep sleep, only it was very, very hard to wake up. 

Bewilderment was, surprisingly, not Ryou's first reaction when he slowly pulled in the dizzy, spinning world that was his mind. He felt... tired, mainly, like he wanted to go back to sleep. 'That had to be the best rest I've had in days,' he thought dazedly. 

One by one, his senses restarted, dully at first then ever faster. Eventually he could make out that he was swamped by layers of something soft, warm and comfortable. A few seconds later and he could make out a distant, garbled voice growling above him. 

"Stupid hikari... Going and dying on me like the pathetic wimp he is..." 

Ryou's eyes fluttered under his eyelids, instant fear shooting through him before he was even fully awake.

"Hold still, you little brat!" A rough, strong arm pressed firmly down on Ryou's chest, holding his twitching body down. 

Something cold and wet dabbed on Ryou's forehead.

Struggling blindly in panic, the boy's eyes flew open, tearing and blinking madly in an effort to focus his blurred vision.

A double image of Bakura looked down him, his gaze intense and flaming.

"Get away...!" Ryou croaked, clawing at the hands that held him.

Bristling, Bakura did so, stepping back to allow Ryou some breathing room. "You're filled with thanks, aren't you, twerp?" he growled, tearing irritably at the wet cloth in his hands.

'Thanks?' Ryou jolted upright in bed, almost losing the contents of his stomach as a wave of nausea washed through him. Swallowing down bile, his watery eyes widened.

Bakura's white shirt --one of Ryou's bigger ones-- was smeared by blood, splashes of crimson dotting the yami from head to toe. With a shriek, Ryou patted himself madly to see if Bakura had done some last-minute open surgery on him. Finding nothing except a bruised nose and soreness in his shoulders, the boy glared at the tomb robber, breathing hitched and hysterical.

Bakura shoved him down again, lips pursed. "Shut up before you hurt something, nitwit."

"Hurt... something...?" Ryou's eyes twitched again in alarm as the taller boy settled by his side, reaching for him. "No, stop, plea--" he whispered weakly, too tired to try another attempt to escape.

"I'm not going to fucking hurt you, you idiot!" exclaimed Bakura, face red with fury as his hands descended upon Ryou's face, much more gentle then expected.

Ryou went completely rigid with fear, holding his breath and shutting his eyes tightly as he prepared for the worst. A tense moment went by and his stomach twisted upon itself. 

Still, no slap came. 

Bakura's touch was warm and firm, at first, trailing from Ryou's forehead to his cheeks, massaging and caressing gently. It was almost... soothing.

Ryou released a shaky breath, melting to the touch.

The strong fingers stopped briefly at either side of his temple, a wave of warm magic passing between them. Instantly, Ryou's dizziness was gone. Then the tomb robber continued on, long digits light and airy as they trailed downward, brushing the boy's jaw.

Ryou felt panic rise up within him once again, realizing that he was a sitting duck under his yami's arms, Bakura's fingers dangerously close to strangling him.

Instead, the large hands paused and surrounded the boy's neck, massaging a spot under the back of his skull.

Sharp pain made Ryou jerk, and with a cry he shoved Bakura away with the last of his energy. But the tomb robber's magic had already performed its miracle; all that remained of the tender spot under the boy's hair was a dull throb in his neck. Blinking madly, Ryou hesitantly snaking his own hand up to poke tentatively at that spot.

He let out a hiss of pain, trailing his fingers over what was quite obviously a large cut.

So that's where all the blood came from.

Ryou frowned. Wait... only there wasn't any blood. Very slowly, he turned huge, questioning eyes to his yami, who was currently scowling at him from the foot of the bed. "B-Bakura...?" the boy's voice was a little more then a croaked whisper, both hopeful and frightened. 'No way...' Bakura had healed him before, perhaps, but only since he needed Ryou's body alive for himself to survive. 

But now...

Bakura made a low, displeasured sound deep in his throat. "That's the last bloody time I friggin' save your life, you ungrateful twit. Don't expect me to do it again."

And with that and a little proud sniffle, the yami stormed out of the room and noisily downstairs, no doubt to raid the fridge. He left his hikari bewildered, dazed and blushing.

~*~*~*~*~*~

Yami had faced the worst of evils. He had faced the stupidest of the stupidest and the wisest of the smartest. Hell, he had faced death itself and didn't even blink.

And yet here he was, curled up in a ball on Yugi's bed, feeling somewhat sick in the stomach.

What if what his aibou said was true? Yami winced at the mere thought, but his hikari had hit a nerve right on target. But unlike Yugi, the Pharaoh knew exactly _who_ might be causing all this 'lovesick' nonsense.

'Damn him, damn him!!' screamed Yami in his head, cursing obscenities in all the languages he knew, most of which were dead anyhow. And damn his stupid body! It just _had_ to go and get attached to the first attractive guy it saw! And _Kaiba_ of all people!

It all started when Jou came skipping out of the Game Shop after rushing to pick up the phone, singing out that Mokuba and Kaiba were coming over for Yugi's 'surprise'. Yami --who had been pinched and poked nonstop since the first of the gang arrived-- had been horrified at the thought and tried desperately to escape upstairs, but Yugi's friends had forcibly grabbed him and dragged him to the front steps, assuring him that nothing was going to happen except that maybe Kaiba would throw a fit. Tempted by that mental image, Yami reluctantly stayed, fiddling nervously as his friends fussed over him.

He had to admit, he was very uneasy about the whole deal. His rival was not going to like this turn of events. It had been hard enough for Kaiba to reluctantly --if unhappily-- accept the existence of yami's and magic, but now that a supposedly dead spirit has suddenly solid flesh and blood, what would the CEO's reaction be?

Kaiba Kaiba Kaiba... Strange man, he was, Yami decided a long time ago. They had been fierce rivals from the start, tentative allies at best, though only in the most desperate of situations. Still, there existed a relationship between them like none other, a bond of mutual respect for each other's skill and knowledge. Kaiba showed a level of fascination and obsession to his rival that almost had Yami flattered, though the Pharaoh had to admit that he returned it all full force, if not secretly. Kaiba was fascinating, even to an ancient spirit who understood nothing of the modern world. The CEO wasn't like the other mortals... While Yugi and the gang were humorous, social and bubbly, Kaiba was cold, stubborn, and arrogant, out there to be the best no matter who or what got in his way. He was young, yes, but youth did nothing to hinder his undeniable genius, nor did it ever stop him from joining and surpassing every aspect of the adult world. 

Yami had never seen anyone quite like that... except himself, perhaps. Maybe that was what had first drawn him to the blue-eyed CEO... The fact that they were both quite alike; devoted to their beliefs, wise beyond their years, holding honor and pride above all other, willing to die for their loved ones... Not to mention they had some unique obsessive-compulsive disorder for dueling.

Whatever the reason may be, Kaiba had always captivated Yami, in more ways then one. The CEO was the only one --and to think, a mortal!-- with the skill to challenge the Pharaoh at his own games, and he was the only one with the guts to laugh in the face of death merely because he had no fear of it. Despite popular belief, Yami had been quite eager to accept Kaiba's challenges every time they were offered; it was always Yugi that declined them, worried about time and saving the world and what not. But if Yami had been in total control, Kaiba would have had a duel every time he asked for, simply because he evoked the curiosity of the age-old spirit.

There was something always so... so _thrilling_ to Yami every time Kaiba was around... He couldn't explain it.

Yami clutched his head, his head spinning. 'This is not happening, this is not happening, this is not happening...'Already, this new body of his seemed more like a curse then a blessing. "Hey, Yami, I--"

Yami jumped visibly as Yugi bounced in, grinning.

The hikari frowned instantly, apologetically. "Sorry; I'll knock next time." He raised an eyebrow at Yami's flustered state but thankfully didn't bring up the attraction topic. Instead, the boy heaved a bag full of stuff on to the bed, sitting on the other side of it as the bed sagged under their combined weight. "Grandpa came back! He got you some school stuff."

Yami looked at him with huge eyes, twitching. He looked down and poked tentatively at the bag with horror. "School...?" he echoed with clear distain.

Yugi laughed. "Yeah, sure! We have school tomorrow! Grandpa signed you up and got a uniform and everything!" He produced some papers, thumbing through them with a small frown. "And just so you know, you're the last son of the daughter of Grandpa's late second cousin once removed."

Yami's eyes twitched.

"... or you could just be my long lost brother," finished Yugi, pleased when his yami nodded. "Okay, cool. Now help me sort all this stuff out; you gotta have a binder for Chemistry and History and Language Arts and... What?" He frowned when Yami crossed his arms and fixed him with a stubborn glare.

"Pharaoh's don't go to school."

Yugi rolled his eyes. "News flash, Yami; people aren't going to be too happy with the living dead walking among them, so you just have to suck it up and fit in."

Yami made a face at the mere suggestion. "'Fit in'? Aibou, I'm three thousand years old and--"

"No, you're sixteen," corrected Yugi cheerfully, pointing to something that looked suspiciously like a birth certificate. "But if it makes you feel better, you just transferred here from Egypt."

Yami scowled darkly but said nothing, huffing.

Pleased, Yugi continued rummaging through the bag, pulling out various folders and binders and those clicky mechanical pencils he knew his yami would like to play with. "Besides, school's not that bad... Jou and the others will be there, and Ryou's making Bakura go, so you won't be all alone." He winced, pausing as if in thought, "Well, its... er... bound to be interesting tomorrow. That is, if we survive it first." 

He laughed to himself, seeing horror flash Yami's face. Raising an eyebrow, the boy grinned mischievously, busying himself with trying to fix the zippers on Yami's new backpack. "Kaiba'll be there, you know." He batted his eyes innocently, as if the comment was perfectly normal and expected.

Stunned silence.

Yami's eyes boggled from his skull and he flushed redder then his eyes. "What?! I--"

"I'm not your hikari for nothing," chirped Yugi, grinning with purely devilish innocence. "Besides, it wasn't too hard to figure out. You almost died when he looked at you. Besides," the smaller boy winked, "he is pretty cute."

An undignified, rather choked sound of horror rose in Yami's throat, but it was cut off roughly by a loud, obnoxious ringing.

BBBBBBBBRRRRIIIIINNNGGGGGGG!

Yugi went flying across the bed, sending the mountain-high load of books flying in his effort to save his phone from sure destruction. Thankfully, Yami was too distracted to try another attempt on blowing up any more modern appliances.

Grinning at the frozen look of dismay on his yami's face, Yugi held the receiver to his ear and managed a breathless, "Hello?"

He was silent for a moment before he frowned, handing the phone to Yami. "Its for you."

Yami blinked at it, clearly clueless. Then, mimicking Yugi, he wrapped his finger around the receiver and brought it to his right ear, though upside down. Sighing, Yugi fixed it for him.

Your majesty?

The voice made Yami jump. Sure, he had been in Yugi's body when the boy picked up other phone calls, but he never expected to actually experience the occurrence himself. Hearing someone's voice right in your ear while their physical form was miles away is quite a... er... new experience. Making a mental note to ask Yugi the details later, Yami hesitantly replied, "Yes?"

Yugi watched curiously as Yami cocked his head, the Pharaoh's eyes growing distant in the mist of the telephone conversation. Then, quite suddenly, the Game King cursed vehemently in Egyptian. Yugi jumped; he didn't know quite what Yami said, but he had heard the term enough in bad situations to get the general idea... though Yami didn't seem like the type to swear in front of ladies.

The Pharaoh shook his head wildly, quite clearly forgetting that Ishizu couldn't see him. He replied something heatedly in Egyptian, obviously dismayed by what he heard earlier. A brief argument then came to pass, heated Egyptian words occasionally broken by silence as both debaters tried to put in their point.

Then, abruptly, Yami almost tossed the receiver at Yugi's head, cheeks flushed with something not too unlike rage.

Yugi frowned, turning off the phone. "What is it?"

Yami opened his mouth to speak, then close it again, brow furrowed. Then, shoulders slumped, he stood. "I have to go the museum to pick up something," he mumbled, irritation and defeat heavy in his voice.

"Why? For what?" 

Yami was silent, hesitating.

Biting his lip, Yugi stood, "I'll go with you."

"No." The sharpness in Yami's tone made them both wince, "Sorry, little one..." Yami's eyes grew a little softer, "This is something I have to do alone. Please, I can't have you interfering."

Yugi was hurt. "But Yami, I--"

"Yugi... I'm sorry, but no." Yami shook his head, his words dying and unheard as he slowly made his way downstairs with the help of the stairway's railings.

Yugi followed him, growing worried. "Is this... _dangerous_?" he demanded. Knowing Ishizu, she was probably asking Yami to commit suicide for some save-the-world reason or other.

Yami sighed. "Ra, I hope not." 

~*~*~*~*~*~

Mokuba was having the time of his life. "Seto likes Yaaaaammmiiiiii....!" he sang, prancing around the room with the occasional batting of his eyes in his brother's direction.

Kaiba, on the other hand, sat slumped in his computer chair, head buried in his hands, trying valiantly --but in vain-- to ignore his brother's ranting. A low growl was all he managed, his left eye twitching somewhere within the darkness of his hands.

Mokuba sat on the railing of the chair, tipping it dangerously. A large grin found its way on his cherubic but perfectly demonic expression. He poked Kaiba lightly in the shoulder. "Admit it, big brother, admit it! I saw the way you--"

"Mokuba!" Kaiba sent the worst glare he could manage. "Don't you...have some cartoons to watch?!"

Mokuba's eyes bulged. "You'd LET me?"

Kaiba sank lower in the seat, "Sure, melt your brains out," he mumbled.

Mokuba cheered and ran off in a mass of hair, and within a record breaking two seconds the sounds from a flat-screen plasma TV was blaring through the whole house. "GOTTA CATCH 'EM ALL!!!" came the victorious and gleeful scream from down the hall.

Kaiba rolled his eyes, groaning as he rubbed his head. This couldn't be happening... No. Bloody. Way. Just hours before he had been worried about business, work and headaches, but now all he could think about was Yami. Yami and those huge, beautiful eyes of his and that delicious body that looked good enough to eat.

Kaiba groaned, hands clenched in his hair.

Lord, never in his wildest dreams had he ever imagined that the Pharaoh would look like that. And never in his wildest dreams had he ever dreamed that someone could look like that... That someone could be so beautiful and bloody brilliant all at the same time. In Kaiba's experiences, either you had brains or looks; it was never both. There was exceptions of course; himself, perhaps, but now most likely Yami as well.

When he was first told the concept of 'yami's', the CEO had always imagined them related to some vague, split personality kind of thing that was far beyond psychiatric help. But in a way, he held on to that new knowledge like a lifeline; finally, a worthy opponent! He always had a nagging feeling that it wasn't sweet little Yugi he had dealt with in their numerous collisions, nor was it Yugi that finally beat the CEO without breaking a sweat. Lets put it this way; Kaiba didn't like to lose. And if he did, he would do everything possible to prode at his opponent, stalking their every move, learning their ways, studying their weaknesses. And the fact that his ultimate rival claimed to be some body-possessing 'spirit' only fascinated Kaiba even more.

But he never expected this...

He never prepared to meet his rival face to face, nor to peer upon a body as solid as his own. 'No one should be allowed to look that perfect,' Kaiba decided with a sigh. No one was perfect, but Yami came pretty damn close, with his huge eyes and his cute smile and the slight sway of his hips that had Kaiba hypnotized. 

And --damn him!-- the CEO now couldn't get the bloody boy out of his mind.

No, Kaiba was not vain. He was not one of those slick-haired James Bond characters who fell for every hottie they saw. He had met plenty of attractive people in his work and his travels, but not one single one of them interested him, though plenty of them --and most of Domino-- was romantically interested in him.

Not that he cared. 

Especially not about the girls that constantly squealed as they stalked KaibaCorp's doorways.

Fine, so he admitted it; he was gay. He wouldn't run outside stark naked and scream it or anything, but just in case anyone asked, he was gay. He preferred the word homosexual, but it didn't matter in this world anyway. And he didn't care squat if he was met with laughter or blank stares or even disgust; since when did other people's opinions matter? His life revolved around Mokuba and KaibaCorp, and Kaiba wasn't planning on searching out or keeping a long-term lover anyway, so it didn't matter which gender he preferred; more often then not, he hated them both. 

But the second he laid eyes upon the beauty that was the Pharaoh, something deep in the pit of Kaiba's primeval instincts stirred, and he had the strangest urge to reach out, toss the boy over his shoulder, and run off with his treasure like some victorious Viking with his loot.

This sudden sense of possession unnerved Kaiba, for he never felt it with anyone except Mokuba before, though on completely different levels. And if that wasn't strange enough, his headache stopped instantly on the spot, banished by a sudden wave of light-headedness that felt --dare he say it-- far too joyful. And for a moment, just a moment, Kaiba felt as if he was back with his angel again, holding the boy close as they kissed under the starry stars.

But this was Yami...!! The blasted Pharaoh-half of Yugi that now, of all things, had a separate body. Of course, a very beautiful body which could move, dance and, best of all--

Kaiba broke that train of thought with a fierce blush, mentally smacking himself. NO, he would not relive that moment on the Motou's front steps. At the time, he had enough sense to save himself from humiliation by leaving the scene instantly, but next time he had a feeling he wouldn't be so lucky...

But the moment the limo had jerked away from the Game Shop, Kaiba took note that his headache quickly returned; by the time they were three roads down, it had throbbed back to full force. Which was painful, if not bloody annoying.

So here he sat, alone in silence with his computers abandoned and his ringing cell phone ignored. And damnit, every time he tried to focus he would see nothing except those blasted ruby eyes that had gazed so passionately into his own.

'Forget it,' Kaiba scolded himself, opening --for the fifth time-- his laptop, 'Spur of the moment. No big deal.'

But now a painful longing wormed its way into him, one not too different from the same destitution he felt every morning when he was tore from the arms of his angel. Only now he had a second angel on his mind, one that he would see and remember just fine, one that was equally exquisite to look upon and no doubt touch, dare he go with it that far.

Goddamnit, why couldn't the Pharaoh had been ugly and just made his life a whole lot easier?

DING DONG!

Kaiba stiffened. Mokuba's show turned off abruptly, the boy just as alarmed.

_No one made it through security without the brothers knowing first_.

In a flash, Kaiba was up, fingers flying across his computer screen. Security camera screens pop up all over, one for each some 5 by 5 feet square of the Kaiba manor and its surrounding area. _All of them blank_. Static flew across some, while others were completely blank. 

"What the--" Kaiba swore colorfully. Those were the best security cameras on the planet, practically indestructible to attack. Heck, anyone who wanted to sabotage them might not even _find_ them. 

And what happened to all the other security measures?

Kaiba sighed. He would have to fire some more employees tomorrow.

"Big brother? You want me to get it?" Mokuba popped his head in the room.

Kaiba hesitated. "No, go back to watching TV." He didn't want his brother in harm's way if this was some armed assassin or something. Of course, he himself had guns all over the place, but the mansion itself was well armed and well prepared to protect him if need be. Plus he needed someone to yell at.

It didn't take too long to reach the front door, though the seconds dragged on like hours as Kaiba flew through the empty mansion. The Kaiba brothers rarely allowed anyone else in the manor, choosing to live alone than in the presence of servants; all business meetings were held at the KaibaCorp building or elsewhere, and all birthday parties or play dates were always held in one of the lesser wings especially made for that use. The central part of the mansion, also the best guarded, was where the brothers slept and lived.

And may God have mercy on those that dared to disturb them.

Kaiba skipped down the last stairway of the central hall and made it to the large double doors without so much a second of hesitation, preparing his most fearsome glare. Despite the fact that the beautiful manor always looked in the best and neatest of order, very few dared to dream of it as fragile or unprotected; in every corner lurked KaibaCorp cams, armory and arms, all designed on a level that rivaled the American Pentagon building, though of course under much more secrecy.

Feeling not the least bit alarmed --though a bit wary-- Kaiba flung open the doors, eyes narrowed. "Who the hell do you think you ar--"

His voice faltered.

Large wine-red eyes peered up at him with their own piercing power, soulful and wide. Yami blinked at him, chagrining inwardly as the CEO towered over him, though not at all about to complain at the very *nice* view of the CEO's tight leather shirt and the sculpted torso he could just *imagine* underneath. 

"... _You_...?" Kaiba's voice was suddenly tiny, though extremely soft and deadly. His stomach suddenly twisted upon itself.

Yami said nothing, lips working wordlessly.

For a moment the two duelists stared at each other, each unable to find something to say.

Finally, Kaiba raised an eyebrow and demanded, "How the hell did you get past security?" 

Yami blinked innocently, smirking his devastating little smile. "What security?"

Kaiba glared, crossing his arms, his height rather intimidating even with him leaning against the door. "What the hell do you want?" he demanded finally, quietly.

Yami frowned, "Look, I'm not here on my own free will." He pulled out a strange, wrapped package from his arms. "Ishizu told me to give you this."

Kaiba raised an eyebrow, mouth suddenly dry. Quite frankly, he wouldn't trust anything Ishizu gave him, but to have *Yami* deliver it... Curiosity winning out, the CEO snatched the package and tore at it unceremoniously.

Yami watched him curiously and carefully, gauging his reaction.

The CEO frowned, ripping the last of the wrapping off. He turned the object revealed over and about in his hands, cocking his head. It was a rather strange item made of gold or some other heavy metal, nothing more then a bulbous, twin-bladed sphere attached a handle. One slim fingers traced the odd eye etched into the staff's head. "What kind of--"

He stopped breathing.

Oh god...

The Millennium Rod.

The Rod twinkled happily, glowing faintly as if happy to be recognized. A shiver ran up Kaiba's spine then, a wave of strange, warm energy coursing through him in an instant. The feeling was ancient, powerful... and most of all, _familiar_...

Kaiba didn't like it.

In a flash, he shoved the Rod in Yami's face, eyes cold and unreadable. "Take it."

Yami frowned, "It belongs to you," he said calmly, slowly, as if talking to a child.

"Look, I'll say it _one last time_: I'm not a some heathen priest and I don't care for your silly Egyptian prophecies." The CEO seemed more exasperated then angry, though it was hard to tell since he masked his thoughts well.

Yami looked at him strangely for a long time, eyes sad and almost weary. Then, silently, he looked away, stepping back as if to resist Kaiba's request. "It doesn't matter what you think," he said quietly, thoughtfully, "This Rod has no true master but you, and it doesn't belong anywhere but in your hand."

Kaiba rolled his eyes, fury growing. "Look, whatever, just the goddamn thing. I don't want it and I don't need it, and you can tell Ishizu to keep her little toys to herself."

Yami's eyes raised once more and Kaiba felt his breath die in this throat. There was something so distressing in that gaze... Something so sad and ancient... "You don't need it? Fine." He covered the CEO's larger hands with his own, squeezing to tighten the grasp on the Rod. "But keep it. It is a gift."

Then he was gone.

~*~*~*~*~*~

AN: RA I HATED WRITING THIS CHAPTER!!! *SIGH* And this is CRAP compared to the other chapters!!! AAAAHHHHH!! -_-;; And I'm totally serious this time, too. I liked the Bakura/Ryou interaction, but generally everything else was horrible, and I didn't understand either why Yami was sad at the end. AUGH! *bangs head on table* Damnit, this chapter was so hard to write and I kept blanking out! So I ended up writing most of it while playing Pokemon Yellow on the Gameboy and doing my stupid homework. O_o Talk about multitasking...! ^_^;; Me proud of the ending though; another thing I planned out since the beginning. Hopefully you guys are a bit happier about the 'romance' involved? The real fluffy stuff starts next chapter, just so you know. Review anyway! Suggestions are always welcome, but FLAMES ARE NOT.

NEXT CHAPTER WILL BE *SO* MUCH BETTER, I PROMISE!!

NEXT UPDATE: (I'm a bit... distracted with my personal life as of the moment --in a good way -- but despite the fact that I also have nothing written after this, I'll try to get the next chapter up soon cuz I feel bad for giving you guys such a crappy chapter...) first times at school, Bakura acting weird, Yami and Kaiba having some interesting... uh... moments in gym class, and as always, some pointless fluff :-p

Oh yeah! If any of you are interested, there's a great new yahoo group started entirely for seto/yami (seth/atemu, wutever) fans. Its GREAT! Its run by crimsonvioleteyes and has people like aniron legolas, yummyyami, yamislove, high priest seto, duo's only chick, moonlitspire, and all these other s/yy authors that I luv and adore. GO JOIN!! Its *GREAT!* Heres the link (be sure to get a yahoo email first if you don't already have one): groups.yahoo.com (slash) group (slash) The_Pharaohs_Palace (slash). Sorry, gotta write it out cuz websites don't upload right or something on ff.net. -_-;; Sorry! Just take out the (slash)'s and replace it with / and you should be fine (add www before the thing if it doesn't work). 


	6. Temptation

* * *

Dear Ra I am VERY sorry to get this out so late. Been what… almost two months? I'm so sorry, I swear! I had a huge writer's block for a month and a half and right when I was about to get over it, I had last-minute exams and then finals (one of which I bombed). And I just found out I have six books to read, two essays to write, 11 chapters to read out of a textbook and a very long packet (with various assignments) to do over the summer for AP classes. (SIGH) Plus I'm gone for July (should warn you). So much for working on fanfics and fanarts over the summer… Don't worry, I'll try anyways. Hopefully I can manage Ch. 7 out before I leave. I'll be gone July 9 - 28 to Australia (WHEE!) so just in case my plane crashes and dies, you'll know. Ra, I hate flying…

A big, giant thanks to everyone that emailed me with ideas for this chapter. I regret that I wasn't able to use many of them, but I really do appreciate the effort. It shows a lot of people care, and that makes me feel very loved. Thanks guys! You're always welcome to help! (**HUGE THANKS to two of my betas, Kagemihari and Soraki, for taking the time to nitpit at this chapter and get all grammar right. THANK YOU! And I apologize to Moonlitspire cuz I didn't get to use her. X-/ Again, sorry!)**

Also, obviously, thank you guys SO much for all the praises last chapter. I LOVE YOU GUYS!! (tear) All the reviews and the hugs and the compliments made me really really happy, and I swear, I'll stop calling my chapters crap from now on. I'm so glad you guys liked the story so far. And a giant hello to all new fans of CWM that happen to stumble on to the story's sequel. Hope I'm not disappointing you! (KEMETLOVER - Thank you for the wonderful praise! You're my most recent fan and also the most curious, apparently. You seem to have... quite a lot of questions. :-p I'd be glad to answer them all --not here-- on an email or something; feel free to email me any time at **alquawen88yahoo.com**. And yes, as for the fourth chapter or so, that was Seto, not Mahado)

One last thing; someone asked if Seto was a virgin before this story. (sweatdrop) Er... I was actually hoping to avoid that question. I don't really know... The idea of Seto being a total, first-time virgin doesn't appeal to me as much as it appeals to some people, but I don't like the idea of him having a lot of one-night flings with co-workers or something. Actually, I don't like the idea of him sleeping without anyone besides Yami at all. TT So I don't know... Is it possible for someone to be experienced without sleeping with anyone? (sweatdrop)

* * *

**CHAPTER DISCLAIMERS**

I know I'm really behind the time (and probably don't have good taste in some people's eyes) but I'm still a big fan of this old song by Christina Aguilera, _Obvious_. The lyrics make so much sense and the melody is beautiful, at least in my opinion. OBVIOUS BELONGS TO CHRISTINA AGUILERA AND WHOEVER MADE THE SONG.

* * *

/.../ = mindlink connection (between aibou's and yami's) 

'...' = personal thoughts

... = translated ancient Egyptian

...= thought speak (for gods only; assumed to be Egyptian but understood by all)

"..." = spoken dialogue (if in English, assumed to be Japanese)

_lots of italics_ = dreams/flashbacks/visions

**bold** = songs

[ ] = footnotes

AN = author's note

* * *

**Chapter 6: Temptation**

**

* * *

__**

_Freedom._

_Finally!_

_Eyes... Vision... Color... _

_Where was he? A strange room... White, but not the white of a temple. And not made of stone... How very strange._

_There...!!_

_A mortal! A boy! Across the room! No matter, he was sleeping. Sleep; heh, such a time-wasting habit._

_Could this body stand? Yes. Yes, it could._

_Wait..._

_He's here... He is here! He is close... Must find him!_

* * *

Ryou jerked awake, suddenly aware of the loud din of banging and clanging from downstairs that filled the air. Groggily, the hikari rubbed his eyes, fumbling for the alarm clock. 'Four thirty? Oh god, what now...?'

He kicked off the covers and rushed out of bed, taking only a second to shiver before he fumbled for the door. He stumbled around the corridor and down the stairs, alarmed. "Yami? Yami, what the bloody hell are you doing?"

He spotted Bakura at the end of the hall, still in his sleeping T-shirt and fumbling wildly with the door and the various locks on the sides. Vases and picture frames lay destroyed and tossed haphazardly around, seemingly knocked from their stands. The sofa was on its back and one of the windows was smashed beyond recognition, a cold morning breeze flapping through the curtains.

'What the...?!' "Bakura!" Panic rose in Ryou's throat and his body went rigid, unable to move.

At the sound of his name, Bakura stiffened, turning slowly.

Ryou gasped. '_Those aren't Bakura's eyes_...'

Bakura's normally fiery brilliant amber eyes were now a near reddish-brown, foggy, and dark. They blinked groggily at him, squinting as if he was terribly nearsighted.

Feeling hunted and terrified, Ryou froze at the bottom of the stairs, flattened against the wall. Unable to do anything else, he trembled like a lamb, shuddering under the intensity of his yami's strange glare.

_This wasn't Bakura_...

"W-Where...?" Bakura's voice was gruff normally, but now it was almost hissing, warped and garbled as if his mouth was half paralyzed. He seemed to be having great difficulty forming the words, even more so than before. "Where...?!?"

Ryou's mouth worked wordlessly for a good few seconds. "Where what?" he croaked finally, cowering. "Where _what_?!"

_The boy was useless... Pathetic thing he was, this mortal... Should kill; might be doing the boy a favor..._

Bakura's body started forward awkwardly, like some freak zombie or one of those aliens-impersonating-humans that hadn't quite fit into its own disguise. Fingers were bent like claws, reaching out for the smaller youth, their malevolent intention clear... The Egyptian's eyes were sinister and cold, revealing little but a strange red glint.

Ryou screamed as his yami approached, managing to regain feeling over his body long enough to scramble up a few stairs. Still, a strong hand clawed at his ankle, dragging him down with violence and strength that surpassed even Bakura's normal temperament.

Ryou cried out in pain as he slammed down into the stairs, pulled brutally down a few feet until his yami towered over him, a frightening and sadistic grin upon his face. His eyes didn't even blink.

"Bakura! Stop, please!" cried Ryou, tears of pain and fear running down his cheeks. He clawed at Bakura's hands. "BAKURA! PLEASE!"

_The host... Host is fighting him... Why?_

"Bakura!" sobbed Ryou, arms flung around himself, head bowed as if accepting or dreading the oncoming violence. "Why are you doing this?!"

_Host is screaming... Tired... Too hard to maintain connection... Perhaps try... again... later..._

Bakura came to suddenly, mind and balance spinning as he realized where he was. He stood at the base of the stairs over Ryou, whose shirt and ankle was now clenched within the tomb robber's grip. There were growing bruises on Ryou's trembling arms and bleeding cuts all over his leg, presumably from Bakura himself. The boy still cowered under him, curled up in a protective ball, shaking from fright.

"What the--" Bakura fell awkwardly to his rear, clutching his head and trying to steady his wavering vision. He felt woozy and weak, his body filled with a strange chill. 'Ra... So tired... What happened?!' He recalled a nice dream about slaughtered bunnies or something, but after that-- How the hell did he get up? No wait, he remembered something... vaguely... Himself screaming... yelling... trapped... helpless... But where or why? It was all too blurred... Jumbled up. Maybe another dream? Hell, he could have imagined it all...

Bakura shook his head to clear it and found Ryou watching himself fearfully from behind trembling hands. After a few seconds, the yami found his voice and was surprised to it raspier than normal. "Yo, twerp, what the hell did I--"

"Stay away from me!" shrieked Ryou as Bakura started to approach, bolting upstairs with impressive speed, slamming and locking his bedroom door with every bolt he had.

Bakura blinked. "Huh?"

* * *

Ryou cried long and hard. It took him a good half an hour to stop shaking, and even so, his knees refused to work and he found himself collapsed in the corner of his room, huddled in a pathetic ball. 'Oh god, oh god, oh god...'

He thought this had ended a long time ago. God, he dared to hope it had... Bakura hadn't touched him for so long, so long that Ryou had almost forgotten... He had almost forgotten the terrifying fear every time his yami raised a hand to him, or the instant panic that shot through him with every hit. Those horrible months of abuse were the worst and longest of his life, and everywhere he went he had carried rows upon rows of painful scars, some that had barely healed.

Even the other hikaris could not understand. Yugi's yami was calm and reserved, with an impressively intact sense of morals for a being locked away in darkness for some three millennia. Malik and his yami were both equally insane, and thus loved and tolerated each other's company. But Bakura...

Ryou didn't know _what_ to make of his yami. The tomb robber seemed to linger somewhere between Marik's insanity and Yami's honor. He could be just as cruel and bloodthirsty as Malik, but just as wary and witty as the Pharaoh. So perhaps, in a sense, he was worse than either of them. He was dangerous, yes, but smart as well, with a sharp, calculating mind...

Perhaps that was why Ryou was in awe of him.

Bakura was everything the boy ever wanted to be. Handsome, fierce, powerful... While Ryou was timid at best, Bakura was out there against the world and loving every moment of it. He did not fear pain, death, or blood, and Ra be damned if anyone thought otherwise. And pity, too. Bakura hated pity with a passion, almost as much as he hated kindness. Which was, perhaps, why he never understood Ryou. And when Bakura didn't understand things, he reacted impulsively --usually with anger, aloofness, or even violence.

And in his own strange way... Ryou loved him. He loved him for his beauty, his strength, his no-crap attitude... The boy knew Bakura needed _someone_ to care for him, since no one else was obviously willing. Perhaps there was a thin line between fear, hate, and love, but in his world where the only show of affection was a punch to the face, Ryou didn't know the difference.

God, he knew it wasn't right. He knew that, of all people, Bakura was probably not the best partner for a relationship. But there didn't seem to be anyone else as fascinating, nor as confusing...

And sometimes... Sometimes Ryou could have sworn he saw Bakura smiling at him... Smiling at him simply because he knew that Ryou, unlike the rest of the world, wouldn't laugh at him if he did. Smiling because, perhaps, he felt safe for the first time in three thousand years. Smiling because, perhaps, he realized that Ryou was the first person to care.

But Bakura rarely smiled.

Still, one couldn't help but wonder... Maybe Bakura did care. It was just that... perhaps he just didn't know how. In his own way, Bakura was just as protective of a yami as the Pharaoh, though instead of acting like a guardian he acted like a trainer, beating Ryou out of the hope that perhaps the boy will grow a backbone.

But the beating hurt. Perhaps Bakura didn't even realize it, but it hurt like hell. And it scared Ryou. Many times the boy considered throwing the damned Ring out into the ocean, or even committing suicide to escape his yami's cackling in the back of his head, but something always held him back... Almost as if, despite the abuse, he couldn't live without Bakura.

Yami explained it once to Yugi, and Ryou overhead it as clear as if the Pharaoh had spoken directly to him. Yamis and hikaris were each their own soul, with their own being and personality, but they were tied to each other like two halves of the same soul, even more so with the Items and their shared bodies. That was why it hurt being away from each other. That was why not even Bakura could resist running back to Ryou when the situation allowed it.

Ryou shuddered against his arms, his tears soaking his pajama sleeves. He couldn't escape, it seemed. He hated the beating, but he couldn't live without it. He hated the Ring, but he wouldn't throw it away. He hated Bakura, but he couldn't live without him.

_It wasn't fair_...! What did he do to deserve this?!

* * *

Seconds dragged on. Minutes passed. Then hours. The night lifted slowly as dawn approached silently. A lone bird dared to chirp outside, and a fierce wind rattled the windows. Ryou's sobs subsided and then faded all together. He slumped against the corner, head limp, teary eyes closed in dreamless, exhausted sleep.

Unfortunately, the nap did not last.

RING RING RING RING RING RING RI--

Ryou jerked awake, cursing colorfully as his head hit the wall. He stumbled across his room, half blind with sleep. After a few tries, he managed to turn off his alarm clock and fall back into his own bed, hissing as his head spun.

"We have to go to school."

The voice was soft and flat, entirely unfamiliar.

Ryou was wide awake in an instant, sitting up and scrambling backwards against the wall, knees bent protectively before him. His eyes were wide and panicked, his fingers clenching so tightly his nails almost drew blood.

Bakura sat across from him on the second bed, silent and ever watchful. He just... sat there, numbly, unmoving, eyeing Ryou's every move. His eyes were strangely vacant, tired and almost dull. His body, usually held so taunt and proud, sagged beneath his shirt, and his normally copper-tone body was abnormally pale around the cheeks.

He looked ill.

Ryou squeaked, his heart rising into his throat. "What do you want?" he croaked desperately, cursing with all his heart the tomb robber's stealth.

For a long moment neither of them spoke, amber eyes meeting and clashing across the room. Bakura's gaze drifted downward after a moment, across the scratches on Ryou's arms and legs. Something akin to guilt flickered across them, but it was gone in a moment.

Then, finally, the Egyptian looked back up, eyes unreadable. "It wasn't me," he murmured quietly, softly.

Ryou was silent, heart pounding loudly in his ears. For a long moment he said nothing, bewildered, teary eyes darting about and frantic.

Silence.

Ryou's breathing was harsh and near frantic.

Bakura shifted uneasily, a brief flinch crossing his fair face.

Then, eyes watery, Ryou smiled a brilliant smile. His voice was tiny but relieved. "I know it wasn't."

* * *

_Something wasn't right._

_Kaiba looked around, bewildered. He was not familiar with this place._

_He was somewhere old, so old that he could feel the age in the depth of his bones. Darkness surrounded him; from above, the sides, below... All around. Close. Dark. Suffocating. But it wasn't pitch black. It was more like shadow, billowing with swirls of faint, weak hues. It breezed by and around him, teasingly, under his arm, through his hair, across his cheek..._

_'Cold...' observed Kaiba warily, hugging himself lightly. Despite his efforts, his teeth began to chatter. 'So cold...'_

_The chill was like daggers of ice, prickling and stabbing every inch of his skin, stealing his breath before he could even utter a curse. He felt like he had run straight into a wall; it was so deathly cold it was painful._

_He couldn't breathe._

_The darkness was closing in on him now, tearing at his body, squeezing painfully at his flesh._

_It felt like death._

_Kaiba's breathing got shallower and faster. He was too disoriented to panic, though he was pretty damn close to doing so. Many times he had been inches away from freefalling from his helicopter and just as many times, simply a pace away from the bullets of hired assassins. And yet in those instances he barely even flinched._

_But this..._

_He felt like he was dying._

_'So cold...'_

_Where was his angel? Where were those beautiful eyes and those slender arms? Where was he?_

_"Angel...?"_

_No answer. He didn't really expect one._

_Kaiba knew he should well be panicking right now. He wanted to... but he couldn't. His mind was sluggish, slowing, puzzled... His body wouldn't move, despite all that he tried. And it was too damn cold to think of anything else._

_"Angel...?" he tried again, a little worried._

_If anything, the cold tightened its grip on him. _

_Kaiba fought it off as much as he could, but it was so nightmarishly tight. He wanted to scream... Scream in anger... in confusion... and in helplessness. Lord, what the hell was going on? He was lost, confused, and cornered, one moment sleeping, the next here fighting for his life against this dreadful cold._

_"No...!" His voice was choked, swamped by this deathly mist. His words died the moment they left his lips, his precious breath leaving with it. "No, damnit... Get off of me!" _

_But he was fighting a losing battle. The darkness had almost consumed him now, wrapped around his body like a second skin, squeezing the life out of him, stealing the air out of his lungs. He struggled, yes, but in vain; the more he did so, the more tired he felt. _

_'Oh god...' he thought dazedly, '...I never said goodbye to Mokuba.'_

* * *

_Time seemed immeasurable here. It might have been seconds since that last thought. It might have been hours, days even. He floated about in nothing, eyes half-mast and vacant, breathing deep and slow, limbs numb and unmoving. Perhaps he was dead already, he couldn't tell._

_But inside he was squirming, refusing to go down without a fight. He was losing badly, but he wasn't going down without a fight. He had to fight. But fight for what? His pride? Mokuba? For the life that seemed little better than this hellhole? For his angel that was nothing but a figment of imagination?_

_'Keep talking,' he told himself, desperately, 'Say something. Anything.' It took him many seconds to find his voice, almost as if he couldn't call upon the effort needed to speak and form words. "Someone..." he croaked finally, with the last of his strength. His voice was soft, choked and dry. He only had a few more seconds, he could feel... Just a few more precious seconds... "Please..."_

_Yes, the great Seto Kaiba was begging for help. Pride be damned, he was beyond caring at this point. Mokuba... KaibaCorp... He wasn't going to give them up without a fight, and if that involved begging, so be it. He knew he would regret this later, but oh well._

_"Someone..." he whispered, mind struggling valiantly against fatigue to form those words. "Angel...?"_

_He heard it then._

_It was not a voice. It did not use words. _

_And yet it still spoke to him in a language of brilliant pictures and images, filled with age, wisdom and strength._

**_I am coming..._**

_Kaiba stirred, squirming, desperate to bring life back to his failing limbs. "W-Who...?" he mumbled, fighting the bitter cold with all that he had left. He didn't dare hope... but what...? Just what if...?_

**_Fight it._**__

_"I'm trying..."_

**_I am coming..._**__

_Kaiba wanted to sob. He was losing... going... and going fast. "Hurry..."_

**_Hang on, Master..._**__

_Kaiba's eyes fluttered dangerously, trying with all their might to ignore his protests and just close. He was tired, beaten and sleepy... and it was so very hard to stay awake..._

_And yet, through the infinite darkness, he could see something... Some distant point of light steadily approaching him through the misty fog. Some strange beast, it seemed, long, twisting and looping like a snake. Yes, like a snake... A very large snake...and sparkling white-silver in color. And with... wings?_

**_Master..._**__

_Kaiba wanted to blink. The creature looked so familiar... So. Goddamn. FAMILIAR._

_It was closer now, clear in shape even to Kaiba's blurred vision. It was almost like a dinosaur of some kind, with muscular, clawed limbs, a long graceful neck and an extensive, whip-like tail. The creature moved and twisted like fluid water, huge, bat-like wings propelling it gracefully through the darkness like some angel from heaven. From its huge, elegantly-built body came a shower of brilliant white light, bathing the fallen CEO in welcomed warmth and shimmering sparkles._

_And its eyes...! They were a dark, deep sapphire, shining like a starry night. God, they looked like his own..._

_A large, bulbous head lowered down from high above as the creature approached slowly, its demeanor serene and submissive, its presence blinding and reassuring. From behind rows of fearful fangs, those beautiful blue eyes smiled as if they had a life of their own._

**_Master_**_..._

_'Good God...' Kaiba's breath caught in his throat. "B-Blue-Eyes...?" he whispered, voice choked, eyes suddenly stinging with something not too unlike tears. _

_He must be dreaming... He must be! Either that or he was already dead._

_But it didn't matter._

_Shaking with the effort, Kaiba reached out tentatively and brushed Blue-Eyes's muzzle with one trembling hand. He inhaled sharply in disbelief. The scales under his fingers felt cold, smooth and metallic, simply made for stroking. The dragon made an odd, cat-like purr in the back of its throat and cuddled up to the hand, nudging it playfully with its large head like a playful puppy. Kaiba wanted to laugh and to cry at the sheer bizarreness of this situation, but he could not. _

_He let out a shaky breath of awe. "...Are you real...?" he dared to whisper, not willing to believe but want to so badly. _

_This was like... like some weird childhood dream come true. Many times in his short and distant childhood, he used to tell Mokuba that he wanted a very special pet; not a puppy, not a kitten, but a Blue-Eyes White Dragon! He would wish for it every Christmas and wish for it with every first robin and first snow flake. _

_As if he would ever get one. _

_Even Mokuba knew that it was hopeless._

_Eventually Kaiba got over it. He grew up, got smarter, got older. They were adopted and he ended up fighting for both his life and his brother's. And then KaibaCorp got tossed into the whole deal, and at least for a while, Kaiba contented himself with mountain-high loads of work and three rare Blue-Eyes cards that he wouldn't trade for anything in the world. _

_But now..._

_Now Kaiba had to wonder. Favorite cards or not, did he ever get over wishing for a live Blue-Eyes of his own?_

_"Help me..." he whispered, pressing his palms and cheek against the cool scales of his dragon friend, "I'm so cold... Take me away from here..."_

_He really hadn't expected the dragon to understand. For a long moment, it just stood there with huge, blinking eyes full of wonder and something akin to innocence. Then those same eyes flashed and warmed, and --unless Kaiba imagined it-- that large head bobbed up and down once._

**_I will, Master_...**

_Kaiba blinked, unsure he had heard right._

_Then, in an instant, he found himself behind the dragon's head, clutching to its neck scales for dear life. They were flying now, the dragon's body held taunt and horizontal as it sailed effortlessly through the dark world. Shadow whizzed passed them in flashes of darkness and color, tearing at Kaiba's skin and stealing his breath from his lungs, but it could hardly keep its cold grip on him._

_Kaiba felt a bit overwhelmed, fear, confusion and giddiness swirling around in a confusing mess in his head. He shuddered and held on to Blue-Eyes a little tighter. "Where are you taking me?" he demanded over the howling wind._

_He could almost sense the dragon smiling. _

**_Somewhere safe._**__

_

* * *

_

Yami suddenly sat up in bed, wide awake and tense.

"Yami?" came a sleepy mumble from above. A short while later, Yugi's bushy head popped up next to Yami's bed. The boy's eyes were red from lack of sleep but were quite wide. "W-What is it? Did you have a bad dream?"

Yami turned to him, silent. His eyes were glowing an eerie scarlet in the darkness.

Yugi shuddered. "Yami, what--"

"Blue-Eyes is gone," Yami suddenly stated, flatly. He blinked, looking down at the Puzzle.

It was glowing.

"Blue-Eyes?" echoed Yugi, "The Blue-Eyes White Dragon? The dragon?!" His voice rose shrilly. "Whadaya mean 'it's gone'?!" His violet eyes widened even more.

From what Shadi and Ishizu had told him, Yami died three thousand years ago sealing the Shadow Monsters into the Shadow Realm. However, Ishizu and Shadi recently discovered that the Shadow Realm was more 'locked' than 'sealed' away. The keys to opening it were, predictably, the Millennium Items, the very objects that locked away the Shadow in the first place; therefore, a holder of any of the seven Items would be able to manipulate --if they knew how-- the powers and monsters of the Shadow. That meant that even though there are now few openings to the Shadow Realm compared to Yami's time, potential danger still lurked around the corner if any of the Items fell into the wrong hands.

Even more recently, Yugi and Shadi had learned that Yami did more than just leave openings to the Shadow Realm; though the spirit himself wasn't even aware of this, he had loved some monsters enough to seal a part of their essence with him in the Puzzle. Ishizu thought the Pharaoh had done this to keep an eye on some of the stronger monsters so they wouldn't wreck havoc on the Shadow Realm... but Yugi had a feeling it had more to do with sentimental love than anything else.

And strangely enough, when Shadi and Yugi traveled deep inside Yami's soul and the Puzzle, they found not only tablets of the monsters and their guardian --the spirit of the Dark Magician-- but also the dormant spirit of the mythological Blue-Eyes White Dragon. Neither Shadi nor Yugi gave any real thought to it at the time, seeing that the Dark Magician was ready to slaughter them; but when Yugi asked much later on, Ishizu reasoned --yet again-- that it must be because Blue-Eyes was very dangerous to both worlds and therefore Yami had thought it would be wise to keep it trapped in the Puzzle with him.

But even so, no monster but the Magician was fully trapped in the Puzzle. Yami had recently grown aware that, if awakened, any monster under his wing only needed a little effort to escape into the Shadow Realm.

Fortunately, very little could disturb the monsters in the first place.

However, now it seemed that Blue-Eyes had simply... slipped out of the Puzzle. Which was strange, considering it had been sleeping quietly and peacefully ever since Yami died all those years ago.

Yugi seemed panicked, moving around blindly for the phone. "Yami, geez, we gotta tell Ishizu and--"

"No... No, wait..." Yami frowned, eyes closing, focusing deep within his Shadow powers. Like some human beacon, he did a quick, sonar-like sweep of the Shadow Realm.

He found something quickly. There was a line of ripples in the Shadow Realm... A disturbance of some sort, moving and moving fast. So fast that Yami had no time to feel alarmed.

Then it was gone.

Simply _gone_.

Silence.

Yami hesitantly opened his eyes, brow furrowing in the dark. The Shadow Realm settled down, innocent as it will ever be. Any trace of the monster or the 'blip' was gone, almost as if it never existed in the first place.

Yugi watched him intently, worriedly.

Finally, Yami sighed and rubbed his arms, pulling the covers back over him. He would think about it in the morning. His new body didn't seem to like him very much for awakening in the middle of the night. "It was nothing, aibou." He leaned back, sighing blissfully as his hand sank into the soft pillow. "Go back to sleep."

"Where's the dragon?" demanded Yugi, still holding the phone.

Yami remained silent, pondering the same thing.

* * *

_It happened quickly. Very quickly. They breeched some kind of invisible barrier and in an instant, they passed from one world to another. There was no longer dark fog around them but quiet, ancient emptiness, blacker than the blackest of nights._

_The dragon shuddered under Kaiba's legs, and the CEO stiffened, eyes widening in disbelief. One minute the dragon was there but the next...it wasn't. It was simply gone. Without time to even scream, Kaiba suddenly fell into a deep, dark abyss, nothing around him but open air. The cold and the pain were gone now, but they were replaced by a strange, buzzing sort of energy strumming with the quiet murmurings of a world long gone. That same energy now surged through him, filling Kaiba with such vibrant power and force that it was nearly painful._

_Images came now, so fast that they flashed before his eyes and were gone before his brain could comprehend them. And with them came sounds and feelings of a strange land with strange people that... did not seem too unfamiliar._

_And suddenly, he was no longer the CEO of KaibaCorp, but someone else entirely..._

* * *

_Mahado, you are pathetic._

_Its --ugh-- harder than it looks. I'd like to see you try!_

_Fine. I will. Move aside, you wimp._

_Um, I don't think this is a good idea..._

_Oh, c'mon, where's your sense of fun?_

_A sigh. You boys are SO immature._

_Stay out of this, Ishizu._

_Whatever. I'm telling!_

_Telling to who? My father's gone, as is the Pharaoh and the other priests!_

_I'll... uh... tell the Prince!_

_Oooooh, I'm scared. What's the little guy gunna do, cry?_

* * *

_Be good, son. I'll be back in a few days._

_But Papa, where are you going? You said you'd help me with..._

_I know, but its Pharaoh's orders, little one. I have to go. Its only a scouting errand with the cavalry, I assure you._

_...Fine._

_Ah, don't look so glum, Seto._

_But I'll be stuck here with the Prince and those losers--_

_--They are your fellow trainees and you are to treat them with RESPECT. The Prince especially. And don't let me catch you setting any more Palace wings on fire._

_A sigh. Yes, Papa._

* * *

_The neighing of a horse. The crashing of waves._

_It was cold... and it was raining._

_Are you mad?! You can't cross the river!_

_Watch me!_

_Desperation. Charging. A jump. A fall._

_Get off of me!_

_Sorry; I'm overriding that command for now!_

_Mud. Water. Lightening._

_Those beautiful red eyes, flashing with anger, grief and pain. They were crying. I have to do this for Mahado!!_

_Stop this madness! STOP IT!_

_GET OFF!_

_Then came the kiss. A feverish, wet kiss of desperation._

_Desperation... and passion. _

* * *

Kaiba awoke in a rather unpleasant way, banging his forehead against the side of his drawer. With a colorful curse, he sat up and clutched his brow, his head spinning with more than just pain.

Lord, that had to be one of the most confusing dreams he'd had yet. It had all been just flashes of images and fragments of conversations, all of it overlapping and twisting into a giant mess. And he was pretty sure they weren't speaking in English. And come to think of it, how the hell did he understand it all in the first place?

'Prince'?! 'Mahado'? 'Papa'? And what the hell was Ishizu doing in the mix?

"Someone up there has it in for me..." mumbled Kaiba, stumbling blindly over to his bathroom and fumbling around for a glass, hissing as his feet came into contact with the cold floor tiles. Taking a few gulps of cold tap water, he dumped the rest of the water out and leaned over the sink, the sound of running water from the faucet soothing his senses.

His head hurt.

Badly.

He took a long, shuddering breath before it promptly froze in his throat. Red eyes... Those eyes...! His angel had visited him tonight... but in a rather violent, strange way. And he spoke. Geez, up until now, Kaiba had figured the boy was mute.

The CEO shook his head, running a hand through his sweaty hair while a bitter, giddy chuckle rose out of his throat. God, he was going insane. First he falls in love not with one of those gorgeous supermodels that constantly fight on national TV over him, but with a made-up figment of his own imagination. Then his 3000-some-odd-years-old dead rival had to appear and look too cute for his own good. And now he was dreaming in a totally unknown language about Ishizu and princes and fathers he never knew.

'Mokuba was right. It must be all the work,' Kaiba reasoned, willingly acting in denial to save what was left of his dignity and sanity. He thought for a moment. 'I should fire some more people tomorrow.'

Feeling distinctly better at this thought, Kaiba meandered through the large backroom and made it back to the doorway. Only there did he realize something he hadn't observed before.

His room was _freezing_.

And it was dark. Too dark. In fact, he could have sworn that shadow just moved.

To top it all off, the Rod was glowing in the corner. He had abandoned it on his table after the little 'incident' with Yami, but now it was refusing to be ignored. Its light was faint and irregular, lighting up one little corner of Kaiba's room and leaving what it couldn't reach to the eerie shadows.

Kaiba blinked once. Then again. The strange state of his room didn't change. Too tired to care, he glared drowsily at the Rod. "Stop it," he mumbled half heartedly.

Surprisingly, the Item stopped glowing immediately. The shadows lifted a bit and the room filled with normal shades and sparkling silver moonlight. The room temperature returned to a reasonable chill, and the air conditioning blasted from the ceiling vent.

Kaiba blinked once more and shook his head as if to clear it. 'I am insane,' he concluded. And with that, he tossed himself back into bed and fell into deep, dreamless sleep.

* * *

"This is so humiliating," mumbled Yami for the last time, half-heartedly dodging behind Jou. He managed to retain a dignified and calm air for most of the walk to school, but now that they were on school grounds, he was growing increasingly antsy. Every eye was turned to him no matter where he went, each stare filled with their own mix of curiosity, wonder and something much like hunger.

And they weren't just from the girls.

"Aw, c'mon, its not all that bad," Jou said with a grin, jerking his head to the school. "The classes suck dirt, I admit, but it's not all bad."

"Name one good thing," challenged Yami, shifting nervously toward Honda when a large jocky passed him with a raised naughty eyebrow.

Jou's eyes crossed. "Er..."

"Don't listen to him," offered Anzu. "He's failing his classes anyhow."

"What does that have to do with anything?" demanded Jou.

"Well, we did get those new computers..." murmured Honda thoughtfully.

"--which died--" added Jou.

"--and the new gym floor--"

"--which sends everyone flying into walls--"

"--and that new transfer student from France."

Jou grinned like an idiot. "Oh yeah. Man, she is hot!"

Anzu rolled her eyes helplessly.

"Look, Yami, we'll be there to help, so don't worry," said Yugi for the millionth time, fixing Yami's backpack like a fussing mother. "Geez, Yami, you're wearing it upside down again."

Mechanically and unenthusiastically flipping around the bag, Yami looked around somewhat irritably at the sea of unfamiliar faces and blue uniforms. "What are we waiting for?"

"First bell," answered Jou with a shrug, stretching out on the bench and therefore squishing everyone to one side. "No one wants to go in that hell-hole before it's absolutely necessary."

Yami frowned. He half wished they were in school right now. Most of the students of Domino High were all here in the front lot; valley girls rushing about to greet friends that they haven't seen since, oh, say Friday; jocks picking on nerds; valedictorians --and Otogi-- flirting shamelessly with girls; a few stragglers struggling desperately to copy last-minute homework, and a few oddballs that sat there and glared at everyone. Of course, there was always the occasional prank trick or hot visitor that would get instant attention.

And right now, Yami found himself in the middle of it all.

Many pairs of unfamiliar eyes passed over him, some from passers by, others openly staring.

"Oh god, is he new...?"

"Maybe a transfer student, you think...?"

"Hell, he can transfer here ANYtime!"

"Dude, I love his hair...! Heh heh!"

"Ohhhh, he's going to need SO much help getting around, you know what I mean?"

"God, he's so cute...!"

Yami shifted uneasily, sitting rather stiffly as if ready to flee. A permanent blush was darkening on his cheeks.

Jou and Yugi exchanged smug grins.

"See? Told you," Yugi poked Yami sharply in the ribs, making him yelp.

"I have a feeling you're going to be liked here," remarked Honda rather dryly, waving at a fellow jock who seemed more fascinated by Yami than him.

Yami protested weakly, his words dying away in a choke when a group of girls giggled and waved flirtatiously at him as they walked by.

Jou watched them wistfully. "Yami, if you become my new best friend, will you let me steal some of those girls?"

"Er..."

Yami didn't have a chance to answer since a wave of squeals from the fangirls stormed past them, large enough to challenge the one that greeted him. He looked around curiously, a bit nervously.

"Ah, that'd be ol' Money-bags," explained Jou bitterly without changing his gaze from where he was watching a pretty blond cheerleader.

Yami briefly felt his heart flutter. Very briefly. Ahem.

"_Whoa_," Honda commented suddenly, "Dude, check out his CAR."

Yami turned and his heart jumped again. Hey, he may be 3000 years old, but he was a boy after all and he knew a cool car when he saw one.

Beyond the fences surrounding school property, he could see the half-filled parking lot and a beautiful, midnight-blue and silver-lined convertible that glided through it. The driver --Kaiba, judging by the hair-- skillfully parked with one smooth movement and stepped out gracefully, carrying his traditional silver briefcase and looking unnaturally good even in the bland blue uniform. Without so much as blinking, he ran a hand through his hair to smooth it and clicked a little remote on his belt; the car beeped and locked itself, flashing its lights once as if to salute its owner.

An appreciated "Ooooh...!" went up from some guys.

The girls just sighed happily.

"The bastard," mumbled Jou as Kaiba approached, "Always shows up and makes such a goddamn big entrance."

Yami squirmed, fighting a blush. Was Jou speaking the truth? Was Kaiba really a show off or was he just extraordinarily attractive in every aspect of his life? The man had some natural gift with modeling if only he would try. But Kaiba didn't need to join --or buy, his choice-- any modeling agency anyhow; his pictures were already all over the world and he was already creating fashion trends in the first place.

"Hi, Kaiba," greeted Yugi pleasantly as Kaiba drew near them on his way to the front entrance. "What happened to your limo?"

Kaiba, towering over the boy, flicked a gaze down briefly to Yugi, his glance cold and aristocratic. It flickered quickly to Yami, who shivered under the intensity of it, but then returned to the hikari. Blue eyes narrowing, the CEO grunted some kind of response and continued on.

He had woken up again last night, unable to sleep. In desperation, he had taken one of his own cars and driven to KaibaCorp HQ, intent on cramming some work in. Along the way, he suddenly was glad he hadn't bothered to take the limo; the speed on the empty roads and the night wind blowing in his hair had done wonders for his mood. He supposed indulging in some teenage pleasures wasn't all bad, after all. Besides, he needed to think, and some time alone seemed terribly seductive.

He did, however, see a police car trying to clock his --illegal, he admitted-- speed, but after the cop recognized him, the chase was over before it even started. And surprisingly, the thrill had made Kaiba smile for the first time in months.

But Yugi didn't need to know that.

* * *

First bell rang and Yami was dismayed to find out just how crowded the school really was. Being a Pharaoh and at most a 'brother' to little Yugi, he wasn't used to brushing shoulder to shoulder with jocks, nerds, cheerleaders and fangirls every step he took. Nor was he used to the rather vulgar language of teen slang or the... er... strange things that go on in a high school, such as a couple making out again his locker right when he wanted to get to it, or boys in oversized clothing running through the hallways with some stolen article of undergarments on their heads, or some senior selling out fake copies of tests to foolish freshmen. And oh, the lockers were so not big enough.

Neither was Yugi, apparently. Sugoroku managed to get Yami into every one of Yugi's classes, but Yami was having trouble even finding his aibou in the mess of the hallways. He tried his darndest to remain calm, but every few seconds he felt like he wanted to panic. Luckily, Yugi and his friends knew their way around, and eventually found Yami just in time for first period.

* * *

Class was... embarrassing.

Not only was Yami forced to introduce himself in front of each and every class, he was also unnaturally prone to sitting in the worst seat available. For history, he ended up in the front with two OPENLY gay boys on either side blatantly trying to grope him in front of the teacher --who didn't seem to care. For science, he ended up with Jou as a lab partner, and to be expected, the lab ended with a fire in Yami's hair and a panicked Jou spilling acid over his own shoes. Yugi spent half the morning excusing Yami's behavior and half of it being very unhelpful. And it didn't help Yami's situation to have fangirls EVERYWHERE.

And then there was... gym.

* * *

"You want me to WHAT?" Yami's eyes boggled.

"Change. Your. Clothes," Honda said with infinite patience, emphasizing each word.

"Didn't you Egyptians wear skirts or walk around naked?" teased Jou. "YOU, especially. You probably had servants doting on you every minute."

"I changed myself, thank you," sniffled Yami, crossing his arms stubbornly, "And they're not _skirts_; they're _kilts_."

Jou rolled his eyes and shared a look with Honda, who was currently tugging on his shorts. "Look, Yug', why don't y-- Yug'?"

Yugi was looking around with a frown, already dressed in his T-shirt and shorts. "Hm?"

"What's wrong?"

Yugi's violet eyes were troubled as they fixed on his friends, of whom Honda was currently forcing Yami into his gym clothes. "... Where's Ryou?"

* * *

They found Ryou, actually. The boy had already changed --somehow forcing Bakura to do the same-- and was currently trying to explain to Mr. Satoshi --your typical beer-bellied and red-necked gym teacher-- that his second cousin three times removed was visiting for a year.

Yami watched this with some dismay, just waiting for Bakura to turn around and laugh at him looking all ridiculous in shorts. The Pharaoh was a bit wary of the fact that gym was not co-ed. Without the girls around to complain about nails and not being strong enough to do anything, Mr. Satoshi probably wouldn't hold back whatsoever in 'whipping' the boys into shape. Yami knew he wasn't the biggest or strongest guy around, and judging by the huge jocks that towered over him now, he felt rather fearful for his health. Plus the Pharaoh knew he was dead screwed if any modern sport came up; heck, he didn't even understand the concept of American 'football', since it had nothing to do with feet in the first place.

He did, however, make a vow to protect Yugi, who was a good foot shorter than even the medium-sized guys. And he did note with gratefulness that Jou and Honda now took it upon themselves to protect him, seeing that half the boys wanted to strangle the Pharaoh and half were eyeing him like edible meat.

Feeling a bit nervous, Yami shifted a little closer to Yugi while the rest of the boys gathered, some fooling around with typical macho-ness while the others spent the time eyeing Yami and Bakura –who glared at nothing in particular—curiously.

Mr. Satoshi was not one for introductions and simply ignored both newcomers, barking out orders loud and strict enough to make even Yami wince. "You there, sit! Derek, tuck in your shirt. And you three; stop and shut up."

'That man belongs in the military,' noted Yami, feeling a twinge of intimidation as a few football jocks snapped to attention and promptly gathered with the others.

Yugi suddenly poked him and grinned a rather demented grin, pointedly shifting his gaze to the locker room doorway.

Kaiba appeared like some glorious Adonis-reborn, dressed in the uniform jersey and shorts and doing it _wonders_. Angels almost seemed to be chorusing in the background as the man emerged, looking distinctly bored and far too hot for his clothes.

Yami blushed furiously. Dear Ra, that man had nice legs. Nice legs AND muscles.

Without his typical bad-ass leather outfit or his whipping trenchcoat, Kaiba looked remarkably boyish, with nothing but his cold glare and his height distinguishing him from his classmates. Still, with his arms and legs bare, one could see a body sculpted out of white limestone, long limbs slender but overlapping with fluid, lean muscles that rippled with every movement. It made Yami wonder… Who the hell would keep a body like that hidden in those bloody trenchcoats?

"Ah, Mr. Kaiba," Mr. Satoshi greeted with an arched eyebrow, scribbling something on his clipboard. "Just the man I wanted to see." Being that he was not a man to smile, the grin on his face was rather unnerving.

Kaiba crossed his arms and mirrored the eyebrow raise, fixing his typical icy glare on the shorter man. His silence spoke a thousand words.

Mr. Satoshi, on his part, didn't seem intimidated. Either that or all of Kaiba's teachers were used to his… ways. With a casual wave and another glance at his clipboard, the man pointed toward a tall tube in the middle of the gym.

Kaiba glanced over and heaved something very much like a sigh. "Oh. Right," he muttered to no one in particular. He had forgotten.

The whole class watched curiously as the tall boy made his way over to the tube and pulled out a stick of some sort, tossing it up a bit to feel it out. Pleased, he turned and balanced his weight on slightly-spaced feet, holding the stick evenly and horizontally in both hands across his thighs. He waited, looking at nothing in particular.

It was most unnerving.

Pleased, Mr. Satoshi turned to the crowd, lips pursed. "Now," he barked, "I have asked Mr. Kaiba to help me demonstrate techniques in martial arts, particularly the ancient art of kendo."

Jou snickered. The mere image of the tall, stubborn CEO waving around a stick like a maniac was enough to send anyone into fits. At least in Jou's opinion.

Kaiba glared at him with a bloody glint in his rather lovely blue eyes, shifting the stick in his hands like an unspoken threat.

"Now, who would like to volunteer to demonstrate with Mr. Kaiba?" Mr. Satoshi grinned a rather sadistic grin. "After all, students learn best when using hands-on techniques."

Blank stares.

A few gazes shifted to Kaiba briefly, some filled with horror, others with respect, others with contempt.

Kaiba rolled his eyes and shifted his weight once more, as if bored.

"Honda would!" perked up Jou suddenly, cheerfully.

Everyone looked at him.

Honda turned and stared at Jou like the boy had grown two heads. "WHAT? Are you CRAZY?" he hissed.

Jou poked him and hissed back, "Oh, c'mon, you kicked his sorry ASS in the virtual realm!"

"Maybe 'cause I was possessed and I jumped on him from a ten story building?!?"

Mr. Satoshi ignored them both and scanned his clipboard. "You," he barked, pointing to Yami, "New kid with the spiky hair." He jerked this thumb toward the middle of the gym. "Out."

Yami's eyes boggled out of his head and widened to ridiculous levels. His mouth opened meekly to protest but only a choke came out.

Bakura snickered somewhere.

Jou, Ryou, and Honda exchanged alarmed looks.

Kaiba stiffened visibly.

Yugi panicked. "Mr. Satoshi, my brother's new to Japan and he doesn't know anything about ken--"

Mr. Satoshi grinned. "Well, this is why its gym 'class'."

* * *

/Aibou, I'm going to kill you./

/Er... why? I swear I didn't--/

/I TOLD you. Pharaohs. Do. NOT. Go. To. SCHOOL./

/Hey, don't tell me you don't like the situation./

Yami eyed Kaiba warily, nervously brandishing his own kendo stick. It felt odd and unfamiliar in his hands. /The man's like two feet taller than I am, Yugi./

/That's not what I meant and you know it./

Despite his hikari's attempt to lighten him up, Yami could sense Yugi's worry for him. And it wasn't helping his own panic. Unlike in dueling tournaments, he felt out of his element here. There was little else in sports and physical combat besides fast reflexes and unrecorded levels of testosterone. Being that he was hardly considered 'coordinated' yet and dueling usually required just standing there and thinking --or at most flipping cards around-- this was what the Pharaoh called 'A Very Bad Situation'. Plus him being half Kaiba's height and weight wasn't helping matters.

Neither was Kaiba's outfit, to put it bluntly.

Yami felt heat rising on his cheeks. Oh god, even if he did know how to fight and beat a man twice his size, the gorgeous, infamously blue-eyed Seto Kaiba in shorts and a rather tight jersey was enough to make anyone want to surrender and just let the man pin them down. Yami felt his stomach twist. Mmm… Kaiba on him wasn't such a bad image…

He blushed deeper as Kaiba's blue eyes fixed on him. Ra, he could just melt under that gaze…

**Can you hear it in my voice...?  
Was it something I let slip...?  
Does the whole world know...?  
Isn't it obvious...?**

/You're getting distracted,/ came his hikari's perky voice in his head.

/Yugi, you're not being helpful./

/Heh. I know./

/Advice would be nice./

/Um… Just mirror him./

'Mirror him,' echoed Yami with a wince. 'Right, easier said than done.'

Kaiba stood to his full height, feet together and hands straight at his side. He bowed formally, never once peeping a word.

Gulping and feeling a sense of doom in the pit of his gut, Yami bowed as well. He noted that his hands were shaking and cursed his traitorous body.

Kaiba stood and took a small step to the side, shifting his weight to both feet with his long legs slightly bent at the knee. He held the stick on the grip near the bottom, the rod out and near horizontal. [1]

Even to a blind man, it was the stance of a fighter.

Yami's eyes narrowed. Okay. He could do this. He was the King of Game, right? He mirrored the CEO's position, a little surprised to find his body better balanced than he thought.

Kaiba's attack came like lightning. Three quick forward bounds in succession and he reached Yami; one more to the side and he assaulted with a shoulder-height hit.

Yami didn't think. He twisted backwards, raising his own stick to blocking elegantly though with little time to spare. Kaiba's fluid strength was admirable and the shock of blocking sparked a flash of pain in Yami's elbows and shoulders. The Pharaoh let out a tiny cry and fell back a step, unprepared and unaccustomed to bodily pain.

/Yami…?/ His hikari's worry was vivid through the bond.

Something tender flashed in Kaiba's eyes and he suddenly backed away, knuckles white around his stick. His stony expression flickered off briefly to reveal something akin to worry and his gaze grew unnaturally warm. The heat in those normally icy blue eyes could have melted fire itself. 'Yami…'

**I'm the one who's in control...  
Now I'm acting like a fool...!   
Do my feelings show? Is my face aglow?  
Isn't it obvious--**

**--that I don't know what I'm doing anymore?  
I'm feeling like a little girl...  
Caught up in emotions, I'm out of control...!  
Isn't it obvious...?**

Yami shuddered under that gaze. Ra, perhaps he was just imagining it… but was Kaiba looking at him with the same longing he himself felt? Or was that just… a strange reflection of light in the other's blue eyes and nothing more?

He snapped back into reality, suspicion in his narrowed scarlet eyes. What was this, a trick? Some sort of weird, sick joke to catch him off guard?

As if to prove that statement, Kaiba's eyes and expression hardened like ice so quickly that the tenderness in them could have simply been imagined. His second attack --this time gentler, Yami noted-- was just as fast as the first, followed by a swift third.

Yami barely parried on time, back stepping quickly. He was impressed. Despite his size, Kaiba moved with the fluid steel strength and elegance of a tiger, his large frame gliding about with grace of a man half his size. There was no doubt that he knew what he was doing.

Which Yami did not.

But suddenly, surprising even himself, the Pharaoh bounced off the balls of his feet and used the momentum and his spin to hit right back. The viciousness and speed of his assault was startling to all in the room.

The CEO as surprised as anyone, Kaiba's eyes widened noticeably. A strange shiver ran through his body, strumming with energy, and the next thing he knew, he simply reacted, blocking once up and once to the right.

Despite this elegant move, he still staggered from the unexpected aggressiveness of his opponent. For a guy so light and skinny, Yami sure packed a lot of speed, and that speed gave him just enough height in jumps and momentum to regain the upper hand.

Attack. Parry, parry. Attack. Duck. Step, step. Block, attack, block. Parry.

The clashing of their weapons echoed like sharp drum beats, followed by quick, light steps as the two worked around each other, circling like vultures for a few breath-taking seconds before clashing and backing away again in a flash.

It was like a deadly dance of cobras.

Surprisingly, Yami felt calm. His awkwardness in his new body was gone, as was his initial worry. Now he felt at peace and in control, for reasons still beyond him. Even if his mind was rather clueless, his body certainly knew a little something about combat, twisting around and springing about with flexibility and speed that impressed even himself. And he didn't need to think at all; there was no 'thinking' involved in fighting. When he saw an opening he went for it, and when that didn't work, he spent the rest of his time reacting to his opponent, matching his angle, absorbing the shock, and blocking his attacks.

He vaguely heard his friends cheering him on, but he didn't pay them much attention.

With a roar, Kaiba suddenly leapt forward like a charging lion.

With no other option, Yami sprang backwards. Or flipped was more like it. Yes, a full backflip. With only one hand, seeing that the other was currently occupied with the bloody stick.

Jou's jaw dropped.

Honda whistled admirably.

Bakura scowled.

Ryou's eyebrows raised to the heaven.

Yugi's eyes boggled.

Yami panted as he landed, crouched like a cat. On him in a second, Kaiba attacked from above and the smaller boy threw himself to the side, rolling gracefully to put more distance behind him and finally bouncing back to his feet.

/Yami... where'd you learn to do that?/

/I have absolutely no idea, Aibou./

It was only then that some sense snapped back into Yami. This wasn't kendo. The moves weren't kendo. Heck, nothing here was even anything remotely like oriental martial arts. It was lighter, quicker, and more speed-based than anything the Pharaoh recalled seeing on TV.

That left only one option. With a jolt, Yami realized he had somehow been fighting with ancient Egyptian techniques; after all, the form and the speed were characteristic of the light-footed ancient style and there was no way in the Afterlife that Yami could have known any other way to fight. Now that he thought about it, it made SENSE. As Pharaoh, he _must_ have learned some self-defense, though he doubted this was anything lower than full out battle combat. But… how was this _possible_? He remembered next to nothing of his past life… and now it seemed like his _body_ remembered more than he did.

And it was only then that Yami realized that Kaiba, as knowledgeable as the CEO was in modern fighting techniques, had blocked every one of his moves and attacked right back with equally Egyptian techniques.

Yami felt a shiver run up his spine, incredulity twisting his gut.

_Impossible_…

He studied the other man carefully, looking for some sort of... of TRICK, perhaps, but he was startled to find Kaiba's eyes glazed over. The CEO suddenly staggered.

* * *

_The large stone chamber smelled of incense and perfume, burners smoking in every cranny. The quiet murmuring of observers filled the air, a sea of oiled bronze skin and white tunics gliding about around them. Flashes of intricate jewelry and molded weapons sparkled in the sunlight pouring in from above, rays of golden light dancing over the ocean of dark hair and dark skin below it. _

_Kaiba was somewhat alarmed. This wasn't the gym. And the rod in his hand was anything but a kendo stick._

_A slender boy faced him, adorned with bands of gold, a near-sheer gold kilt and a white headdress covering a fearsome falcon mask. He was beautiful all over, his dark skin oiled and perfumed, his lithe body twisting like liquid metal as he shifted his weight on delicate little ankles. Needless to say, he was saying, wine-red eyes twinkling eerily under the mask as he twirled a pair of tridents in his deft fingers, I'll enjoy defeating you. His voice was a clear, flowing tenor, dripping with confidence and sarcasm._

_You wish. Kaiba took a fighting stance, one foot slightly behind the other, his weight even and light. He noted vaguely that he was wearing some kind of... skirt. The thought, strangely enough, didn't really bug him._

_The falcon-warrior attacked like a striking cobra. The movement was a blur to the mortal eye. Kaiba blocked so fast he wasn't even aware of his own movement._

_The other boy retracted for the briefest of moments, then attacked again with even more speed. Kaiba blocked once more, jabbing his rod upward to absorb the force of the blow._

_Their dance continued effortlessly, faster than the eye could follow. Attack, block. Parry, block. Block, attack, back, jump. Flip, parry, turn, parry. Jump. Block. Overhead attack, underhand block, side attack, side attack. Parry. _

_Then, suddenly, Kaiba jabbed his rod to the floor, the sharp clang ringing through the room. A quick flick of his wrist and his opponent went down fast, falling flat on his rear in a mess of slender limbs and gold cloth._

_A gasp rose from the spectators. _

_The falcon-warrior scrambled backwards as Kaiba approached with an outstretched rod, grinning. The small boy glared up at him like a trapped kitten, raising his mask to reveal a startlingly fair face with narrowed scarlet eyes and a dark scowl._

_Why, your highness! Kaiba laughed, You should put on your mask! Let us not scar that pretty little face._

_A cry of outrage filled the air and a slim leg went arching through the air. Kaiba's rod went flying. In a flash, the boy was up and on him, tridents crossed at the taller man's neck, one drawn back._

_Crimson eyes laughed down at him. "I believe... you are beheaded."_

* * *

Yami's cry of alarm rang out through the gym.

Kaiba's shoulder slumped and he staggered off balance, collapsing forward like a limp bag of flour.

Yami's fingers went slack with surprise and he dropped his stick, running forward before he even knew himself what he was doing. With open arms, the Pharaoh caught Kaiba as the man fell, grunting as the CEO's heavier weight forced him to his knees and knocked the breath out of him. "Kaiba?" He felt panicked, his voice rising octaves. Kaiba was a dead weight on his shoulder and despite the Pharaoh's attempts to rouse him, the CEO didn't move. "Kaiba?!"

Out of the corner of his eyes, Yami could see Mr. Satoshi and Yugi running toward them, followed closely by Jou, Honda, Ryou and Bakura.

Yami's heart pounded madly in the boy's chest, the sound ringing in his ears. 'Oh Ra...' He collapsed to his rear, his muscles weary from the fight and unused to bearing heavy loads. Ignoring the flush on his cheeks from Kaiba's close proximity, he shook the man's shoulder with desperation. "Kaiba?" he asked again, meekly this time.

Thankfully, the brunette responded. He shuddered as he was pulled violently back into consciousness, gasping for breath. He felt... cold. Cold and tired. With a groan, he rolled off Yami's shoulder and fell on his back on the cool gym floor, shakily covering his face with his hands.

'Bloody hell, what WAS that?' he demanded to himself. Dreaming at night was one thing but now... in broad daylight, when he was wide awake?! Perhaps he really was insane, no joke. But the imaged seemed so REAL... The smells, the sights, the objects and the people... He swore he could still feel the light weight of that falcon-warrior on his chest.

Opening his eyes, he found that no, it was just Yami, leaning worriedly over him with those far-too-beautiful red eyes of his.

"Are... Are you alright?" the boy asked with wide eyes, his expression far too worried.

Kaiba blinked and inhaled sharply, not noticing until now just how CLOSE Yami was... Lord, he could just reach out and touch that silky, tri-colored hair... Maybe even run his hand through the strands and stroke the boy's smooth, dark skin...

...Heavens, Yami was so beautiful... and so close...

'NO.' Kaiba closed his eyes, swallowing something that felt a lot like a lead ball. No, he was being foolish. Very very foolish.

But Lord, he was so _close_...

**Do you see my hands? They tremble...  
I know why I can't look you in the eye...!   
Don't know how long I keep this inside...  
Isn't it obvious...?**

**I don't know what I'm doing anymore...!  
I'm feeling like a little girl...  
Caught up in emotions, I'm out of control...!  
Isn't it obvious...?**

When he opened his eyes again, he could made out the painfully bright lights hanging from the ceiling and many blurry faces --Yugi and his friends among them-- peered over the Pharaoh's shoulder, all with mixed emotions of worry, horror and surprise.

Kaiba's eyes twitched. "Get off of me," he grunted, shoving Yami roughly away.

He didn't catch the hurt that flashed in the Pharaoh's eyes.

"What happ--?" demanded Mr. Satoshi.

"Nothing," was the interrupting and curt reply. "I'm fine," snarled Kaiba through gritted teeth, standing shakily and brushing himself off. His hands were trembling, but he forced them still.

Everyone backed away as Yami climbed awkwardly to his feet, his expression wounded and confused. "Kaiba--"

Ignoring him, Kaiba shoved through his classmates, all of whom immediately gave him a great deal of room to pass. With wide eyes, the startled boys watched in stunned silence as the CEO stormed through the gym, ducked into the locker room, and slammed the door behind him.

The sound echoed, a dead weight slicing through the quiet of the gym.

After a moment of silence and much to Yugi's bewilderment, Yami rushed after him.

Yugi struggled to grip Yami's shirt but failed. /Yami, Kaiba's the only student that can cut and not get in trouble for it! You, on the other hand, can't just--/

"Sorry, Mr. Satoshi, I don't feel too well!" yelled Yami over his shoulder before he disappeared into the locker room.

Everyone blinked, then turned toward Yugi with bewilderment.

The boy laughed nervously, scratching his head. "Uh... Ah, well, he's used to tropical climates so he's not... er... taking Japanese weather very well."

"Yeah, you know, hay fever season and all..." added Jou.

Though no one looked too convinced, a few boys made an "oh..." with their mouths and blinked at each other. No one noticed Bakura sneaking toward the locker room.

* * *

Kaiba changed swiftly, his limbs still shaking. For a moment, he glared at his blue jacket for no reason, his breathing hard, his fists clenched. Ra, something was wrong with him... Very very wrong.

And he didn't like it when there was something wrong with him.

With a final sigh, he shook himself. He needed to go home. Go home and possibly get some rest... or better yet, get some work done and get his mind off all this nonsense. Finishing changing and with his briefcase open at his side, the CEO stuffed his gym clothing in his locker and absent-mindedly rummaged through it for anything he might have left.

With a frown, he pulled out something long, warm and heavy.

The CEO's blue eyes widened.

The Millennium Rod rested quite happily in his hands, glowing faintly and innocently.

'When the bloody hell did THIS get here?!' Kaiba swam desperately through his memories of the morning. He had gotten up early, skipped his normal cup of coffee, took the car and... took the Rod with him. Yes, he had the briefest recollection of taking this damned thing and putting it in his briefcase.

But why? He hardly remembered doing so! And he must have done it without fuss since he didn't remember anything about throwing it across the room or fighting with himself about taking it along. And strangely enough, he hadn't even thought about it since the morning... Almost as if it was second nature to have the Rod with him.

Kaiba shook his head in disbelief. He must be suffering from caffeine withdrawal or something... "Stop that," he absentmindedly scolded to the glowing Rod, and was again surprised when it obeyed. Quickly, before he thought about it too much, he stuffed the Rod in his briefcase and shut it angrily, locking it. "Once I get home, I'm going to have you melted down, made into tiny dolls and mailed separately to the most distant countries I can think of," he muttered to the briefcase.

With that, he straightened his jacket, pulled the briefcase to his side and moved for the exit. He growled about nothing in particular. 'My car better be in one piece...'

* * *

Only minutes later...

Squinting in the dimness of the locker room, Yami was a panting, trembling mess. At a total loss of what to do, he was worried, confused and rather dizzy. Now that he had so... _skillfully_ excused himself from gym class, he had no plan whatsoever. Why had he ran after the CEO anyhow? Even if he had caught up with the guy --which he noted that he did not, seeing that the locker room was distinctly EMPTY-- what would he have done? Pamper over him? Demand to know what's wrong? Drag the man to the nurse's office? Either way, his actions would probably have seemed suspicious and he probably would have made a fool of himself by trying; after all, the CEO did not take well to pity.

"Kaiba?" he tried half-heartedly, not really expecting an answer. His voice echoed and bounced off the metal lockers, but there was no human reply.

The Pharaoh felt the back of his neck twinge and rubbed it, frowning. He sensed the lingering presence of some wild, uncontained magic... but it was very weak, the source having left the area. Feeling a tad wary, the Pharaoh snuck around a bit and poked at random lockers, finding nothing except for a few extremely dirty gym socks. Yami stood and scratched his head. Perhaps he had just imagined that little twinge... After all, he and Bakura both changed here just a while ago, and to the magical world, they were both walking beacons. He shrugged to himself, wrinkling his nose as he made his way back to his section of the locker room. 'Ra, this place smells terrible...'

Hesitantly, he unlocked his locker and changed into his school uniform, trying to think clearly as he shakily redressed himself. What was he going to do? Kaiba was gone to who-knows-where, and there was little chance Yami could catch up to him now, knowing how fast and efficiently the CEO could move. Besides, the Pharaoh didn't have a clue what he was going to do or say if he found said CEO.

Yami stuffed his gym clothes in his locker with a sigh, taking a deep breath and running a hand through his hair. His arm still shook a little, only now feeling the toll of physical combat. Stretching his cramping, complaining muscles a bit, the former spirit winced and made a mental note to ask Yugi and Ishizu about his body's odd behavior. How could someone be physically uncoordinated and still fight like a pro when he himself didn't know how to?

Something squeaked.

Jumping, Yami turned and glanced at the locker room door. There was no one there. Blinking for a moment, the boy shook his head, rubbing his eyes. He was hearing things. He straightened his jacket and fixed his neck buckle quickly.

Now back to his original question... now what? He very well couldn't go back to class, after all... Gathering speed as he fixed his Puzzle and some other accessories, Yami stuffed his extra things in his backpack and hastily swung it over his shoulder. Perhaps he could still catch up to Kaiba... What he would do if he did was still up for grabs, but it was worth a try.

What if Kaiba was really ill? What if he was somewhere in the school, fainting? Or maybe he was coughing up blood somewhere and... and... The mere mental image made Yami's new-found stomach twist painfully with panic. Ra, he had to find Kaiba NOW!

The Pharaoh turned hurriedly and nearly jumped out of his skin. "AH!"

Bakura sat on a bleacher just a few feet away, hidden in the shadows, a still as a crouching cat.

"What the-- When in the name of Ra did YOU get in here?!" demanded Yami, looking around wildly and trying to still his racing heart. He should have sensed something...!

Bakura stood slowly and Yami frowned, noticing that he seemed to be rather hunched and more off-balanced that normal.

"... Are you sick or something?" he asked hesitantly, watching the other Egyptian lurch forward out of the shadow. "Did you hurt your leg in gym?"

Suddenly, with a primal growl, the tomb robber staggered forward with surprising speed, shoving Yami back into the corner and grabbing the small boy's arms with a tight, unforgiving grip.

Yami hissed in pain as he slammed against the metal lockers, the locks digging into his back. "What the HELL do you think you're doing?!?" he hissed, struggling and beating against Bakura's lithe chest. His rage rose. "What is the meaning of this? Damn you, Bakura, LET ME G--"

He choked on his own word, crimson eyes growing wide with surprise and horror.

Bakura seemed... different. _Very _different. His eyes were a dark, reddish-brown, hard, icy and nearly pupil-less. There was a strangely feral snarl on the man's face, a mass of tingling, vibrating energy swirled swirling around him in an invisible aura.

It raised the hair on the back of the Pharaoh's neck. Try as he might, Yami couldn't identify the energy. It wasn't any magic he knew, and it wasn't anything he could control, which was saying a lot. And the energy was very VERY powerful.

For the first time in three thousand years, Yami felt real fear; the kind that gripped you, suffocated you, and made your knees weak. His heart pounded madly in his ribcage and he swallowed hard, feeling something like lead shoot to the bottom of his stomach. 'Ra...' "What... What's gotten in to you?" he whispered in horror, squirming in Bakura's grip, "Get off of me!" His instincts screamed at him to get out, to run... but he couldn't.

_Pharaoh_... Bakura hissed, savoring the word. His voice was raspy and torn, making speech sound rather painful.

Yami shuddered under the intensity of that gaze. He switched to their ancient tongue. W-Who... Who are you? he demanded finally, fearfully. This wasn't Bakura, of that much he was sure. But then who bloody was it?! No normal being could possess an ancient Egyptian tomb robber, that's for sure.

'Bakura' grinned a dangerous grin, leaning in with glowing eyes. It is you... he purred, trapping Yami against the lockers as one of his hand roamed upward to grip the side of the Pharaoh's head painfully, roughly stroking the boy's cheek. The other hand slid downward, stroking the smooth skin and groping the boy's tight rear. So beautiful...

* * *

_So beautiful... The being's eyes were fiery red, burning with lust. His voice was like that of a mountain's, low and rumbling, husky with desire. His large, strong hands, so dark they were nearly black, roamed over the other's skin, stroking the milky golden-bronze flesh and drawing shudders from the small body._

_Ngh... The falcon-headed being whimpered, half-heartedly struggling against the larger's touch though his inexperienced, traitorous body arched toward those talented hands. Despite him fighting against the rising heat within him, his young body was already unbearably aroused and he was at a loss for how to deal with it._

_The larger creature shifted him in his lap, stroking his inner thighs and making the small being tremble. One arm came up and snaked around the small one's waist, pulling them together like pieces of a puzzle. Sharp teeth nibbled at one of the boy's puckered nipples, drawing small cries from the small being. _

_Overwhelmed and dizzy with pleasure, the young one looked away in shame, fluffing his feathers in what his uncle has come to realize as a falcon's way of showing uncertainty and fear. The youth squirmed, making a weak attempt to escape from the elder's groping hands._

_You still fight me, Horus...? the dark being whispered, his flesh muzzle brushing Horus's slender shoulder, nipping at it with sharp fangs and nearly drawing blood from the beautiful golden skin. Heh... You are your mother's son. As stubborn as a mortal donkey, Isis is._

_Don't... Don't talk about my mother that way...! panted Horus, feeling his savage rage --also an inheritance from Isis-- boil within him. _

_Seth sucked at the boy's neck, grinning. His hands snaked under the boy's gold kilt, tearing it away. Do you want this, little one...?_

_Horus struggled harder, gasping and moaning. No! _

* * *

Yami gasped, trying to pull away. No... Stay away...! he cried. He suddenly felt weak... Weak and growing weaker. This... This _thing_ was sucking energy out of him, he could feel it! But despite his efforts, he couldn't break away from the being's hold.

And the thing's naughty hands felt hot... Hot and good.

Yami's head lolled back as he openly panted, a strange, unfamiliar heat spreading through his body and flooding his insides with hot, boiling lust. Ra, it had been three thousand years... Three thousand years since he had felt such arousal... since he felt another's hands roaming his body in such erotic ways... and sweet Nut, it felt _good_...!

That's it, love... murmured his trapper's low, husky voice, pressing against Yami's small body with his larger own, their arousal and heat rising together. He wrapped strong, encasing arms around the boy's delicate torso, one hand snaking under his tight leather shirt to play with his nipples.

The boy moaned desperately, arching to the touch and instinctively wrapping his arms around his attacker's neck, offering himself. The larger man lowered his head, sucking and nipping at the beautiful Pharaoh's lower lip as the boy panted, drawing more keening whimpers. Finally, the being pulled Yami's head back down and closed his lips over Pharaoh's, tongue occasionally dipping inside the boy's open mouth.

A desperate moan rose from the small boy's throat as his mouth was savagely ravished, his attacker's hands continuing to send waves and waves of the strange heat into his body. Yami was helpless, terribly aroused and dizzy, wrapping his slim legs around his attacker's thighs and hanging on to the man's torso for dear life.

'It's a spell...' the Pharaoh realized dazedly as he was kissed senseless, the random thought bubbling up somewhere in the back of his mind. 'The bastard's casting a spell on me...'

By Ra, it was one _hell_ of a spell though...

Suddenly, he realized that he had someone's tongue stuck down his throat. As exciting as the thought was, it wasn't the tongue of the very someone he _wanted_ to stick their tongue down his throat. And NO ONE stuck their tongue down the Game King's throat without his permission.

Nooo! With the last of his coherent thoughts, Yami called upon what he could reach of the Shadow Realm and threw the dark energy forward with as much power as he could muster. Granted, it wasn't even _close_ to a good, solid attack, but it was enough. His third eye flickered and activated, its blinding glow filling the locker room. Get. Off. Of. ME!

His blast was savage, ripping through the locker room and sending burnt metal and wood flying everywhere. Despite the attack being rather weak, it still could have easily reduced a grown man to cinders. Or at least stun a spirit senseless.

Too bad it didn't happen.

Strangely unhurt, the being in Bakura's body backed away slightly, more in surprise than anything else, the blinding light momentarily distracting him.

Yami saw his opportunity. With shaky legs, he dashed past the larger man and snatched up his backpack, scrambling over fallen lockers and gym socks as fast as he could. Coughing and tearing in the burning smoke, he fought down a wave of nausea, feeling the overwhelming urge to throw up. Ra, his poor body... Two days in and he was already dragging it through hell and back. Feeling still over-heated and weak, he stumbled, fumbling around in the wretched smoke for the exit.

Somewhere, he heard the faint screams of terrified students in the distance and realized vaguely that he must blown up a rather large chunk of the school. That... might explain the fire he now felt searing his skin. Reflexively, he tried to contact Yugi to see if the boy was hurt. However, their bond was blocked by the spirit-world's equivalent of static, and even trying to breach the strange obstacle made Yami feel like running into a brick wall.

For only the third time since he woke up from his millennia-long sleep, Yami felt alone. VERY alone.

He heard a growl and a few quick steps behind him and jumped, quelling a cry.

Bakura --or whatever that _thing_ was-- was still chasing him, looking for him.

Only... for a single moment... Yami felt the old Bakura's presence, flickering in and out of the strange energy field that had rendered the Pharaoh powerless. Yami sensed that the tomb robber seemed scared. Scared, confused, and disoriented. But only for a moment.

Then the demon was back, fighting for control.

Bakura's voice came floating through the screams and the smoke, half its normal deep tone, half the raspy, savage one. The words were warped and garbled, slowly but surely dragging out in both Japanese and Egyptian. "He is coming for you..."

Though it was hard to hear or see anything through the smoke, Yami heard the declaration just fine. And despite himself, he shuddered.

Finally, surrounded by screams, flames and rubble, something kicked in that Yami hadn't felt for a good three millennia. ADRENALINE. His reborn body, weak or not, wanted OUT of there. Quite frankly, Yami was only too happy to agree.

As something like full-fledged panic replaced fear and confusion, the Pharaoh's questing fingers found a door. A locked one. A quick blast from his already abused powers and there no longer was a door. Coughing, he fell through the doorway on to cold, wet pavement.

AIR! He inhaled and panted, feeling giddy. Ra, he's never felt so happy to be alive. Especially since he's been dead up until... two days ago.

The stinging smoke and burning heat still billowed out from behind him and he scrambled up, stumbling out of school building entirely with his clothing and backpack singed but thankfully in one piece.

It was cold. And it was raining. And it was raining the type of rain shower that went on forever and soaked you through and kept you soaked. The sky was dark and evenly gray, gloomy and sagging with extra water, which the clouds quite happily dumped on him. Shivering and trying to calm himself, Yami looked around and found himself on the blacktop, surrounded by abandoned basketballs, basketball hoops and a few open fields where he briefly recalled that Honda and Jou liked to play soccer.

Pharaoh...

Yami felt something like thunder jolt through him and in an instant, before he even consciously made the choice to, his body was fleeing the scene, feet dashing madly across the concrete and soon across slippery, fresh-cut grass. He slipped once, then again, but thankfully didn't fall.

'Well, this is just dandy,' he thought bitterly to himself, 'I'm running away. Ha, me, of all people.' Not that he had a choice, he reminded himself. He could sense the strange being not far behind him, lagging and loping and obviously once again in total control of Bakura. The Pharaoh felt fresh fear run through him. Yes, since his powers had failed him, running away seemed like a very good idea. Not to mention the only selection on his pathetically short list of options.

For a long time, Yami ran and ran, adrenaline pumping through his system and keeping him going long after pain and soreness started to build in his muscles. He ran past the half-dead forest that surrounded the back of the school, leaping over logs and dodging trees with speed and grace he didn't know he had. Beyond the forest, he ran past a construction site and through an intersection, dodging speeding cars and wincing as a wall of annoyed beeping reached his sensitive ears. He reached a nice, suburban development and sped through it, scaring quite a number of pre-school kids playing in the puddles and hearing their overprotective mothers scream at him about 'crazy high school kids'.

Yami could sense the strange being following him most of the way, and the mere thought kept him going at neck-breaking speeds. He felt very cowardly for running, but still, he didn't know what the creature had done to him and considering he had been powerless to stop it, he wasn't willing to relive the experience. Now normally there wasn't a being in existence strong enough to take him out... but after what the weird demon had done, Yami found that maybe --just maybe-- there might be someone out there that no one else considered.

He knew they must be making some strange sight. At a first glance, he and 'Bakura' must seem like two high school buddies cutting class and chasing each other through the city like typical teenage boys. Which is probably why no one had reported them just yet.

Yami felt his heart race to the point of collapsing, gasping for air as he skidded down the sidewalk past an annoying pink-painted house. 'Ra, why isn't there a police car around when you needed one?!'

Eventually, reaching the heart of Domino and dragging himself into the streets of downtown, Yami slowed and finally stopped, wheezing as he leaned against a half-finished building with graffiti scribbled over the sides.

The weird _thing_ was gone. As was Bakura. The Ring wasn't anywhere nearby, as far as Yami could tell, and it hadn't activated this whole strange episode. Which was even stranger.

Panting, Yami slumped against the wall, dropped his head back and sank to his knees, his body screaming bloody murder at him. The rain continued to pour, moisture soaking his jacket and getting under his leather shirt, zipping it to his skin. Despite the chill, however, the cool raindrops felt good plopping against skin. They felt like little explosions, tingling the nerves where they hit and trailing down his face and arms like a silky snake.

Strange... If he hadn't been chased by some demon-reborn just minutes ago, he might have noticed earlier that this was the first time in dozens of hundreds of years that he had felt real rain against his skin. The thought was comforting.

For a while, he just sat there and soaked up the rain, trying to catch his breath. Finally, shakily, he looked up and around. Above him was the crumbling structure of some old apartment building, dark and covered in cracked red paint. To the left was the edge of the development full of screaming mothers and hysterical kids. To the right was a long, empty road, and through the darkness, Yami could make out shadowed alleyways and tall, glass-covered skyscrapers reaching high into the cloudy sky.

It was then that the Pharaoh realized he was lost.

/Yami?/ The well-timed cry of his aibou's thought-spoken voice in Yami's head made the Pharaoh jump.

Relief flooded Yami's system, warm and welcoming. /Ra, Yugi? Is that you?/

/Geez, what happened?! I've been trying to contact you forever and you never answered!/

/...Sorry./ Yami winced, wisely leaving out the details --none of which he understood himself-- of why he couldn't reach his aibou.

/And what the bloody hell did you do?! Did you blow up the school?!/

Yami flinched. /Um... yeah./

/Why?/ The hikari --bless him-- sounded more worried than angry. /Did you get attacked? Are you hurt? After I couldn't reach you, I thought that you died in the explosion or something...!/

Yami checked himself over and was surprised to find that, besides being terribly sore, he seemed fine. /I'm... alright. I think./ He still felt light-headed and... well... aroused, but Ra forbid he tell his aibou.

/...Where are you?/ asked Yugi finally. /They've evacuated the school because of the blast and right now I don't see you out on the parking lot./

Yami looked around, wincing once again. /Um... I'm not sure, aibou. I think I'm where you call 'downtown'./

Silence.

He could sense Yugi's confusion and disbelief.

/DOWNTOWN? How'd you get there?! That's a good... few miles from here!/

Yami blinked. /Er... I ran?/

Again, Yugi seemed incredulous, but thankfully, he didn't question Yami's running abilities any further. /Why are you downtown, Yami?/ he asked finally, bewildered. /What happened?/

Yami hesitated, feeling the now familiar feeling of fear come on him again. Ra, what DID happen? He had been cornered, attacked, kissed and groped by someone he had thought had been Bakura, but now was pretty sure wasn't. Plus he hadn't been able to use his powers --a frightful thought-- nor contact Yugi. And yes, he had been chased half way across Domino by the same strange being, who was now thankfully, though strangely, absent. And yes, now he was lost. /I-- um.../

He didn't understand the situation. And if he didn't, than Yugi obviously wouldn't. And plus if it was something as serious as the Pharaoh being nearly raped and rendered powerless by some new enemy... perhaps it was best big-hearted little Yugi didn't know. The boy was, after all, a worry wart, and until the situation was sorted out, Yami doubted that Yugi freaking out would help matters.

The Pharaoh wracked his mind for an excuse. Yes, it seemed wise to keep this all from Yugi for now. Hell, it scared Yami himself half out of his wits. He didn't want his aibou to be even more scared. /I--um.../

A flash of thunder overhead made the Pharaoh jump, and he looked up in time to be slapped in the face by a wave of freezing rain.

/Man, its raining hard,/ commented Yugi, sounding faint from the distance between them. /Look, Yami, they're contacting our parents and shutting down the school. I don't know what you did or why, but stay where you are. Once Grandpa comes for me, we'll come looking for you, okay?/

Yami winced, shivering in the cold and wincing as his legs screamed in pain. /Aibou, don't worry. I'm not going anywhere fast./

* * *

Kaiba cursed the red light. Damn the bloody thing. He would have probably run through it if it hadn't been for the goody-too-shoes in front of him that stopped when the light was only YELLOW. As of the moment, his plan was to go to KaibaCorp HQ for some papers, then head on home to where silence, a good cup of coffee and a fast computer awaited him. And it would be nice if he got home SOON. He sighed, leaning against the wheel and feeling sourly tempted to honk.

Getting out of the school had been easy enough so he had checked briefly at Mokuba's middle school just to reassure himself the world wasn't ending. Even if he was going insane, the CEO took comfort seeing a normal scene such as his little brother leap up and down in his seat trying to answer some stupid question asked by the teacher. Thankfully the younger Kaiba brother hadn't gotten his elder's horrible school skills; Kaiba usually seated himself in the farthest, deepest corner of the room, pulled out a book or his laptop, and promptly ignored the lesson, the other students and the teacher for the rest of the class.

Kaiba was jolted out of his thoughts when a flash of lightning tore through the sky and thunder rumbled through the city. If anything, it rained harder. The man sighed again. He wasn't in the mood to get any more depressed by Domino's horrible storms.

The light turned green, and waiting briefly for the other car to turn into another street, Kaiba moved his foot and stepped on the gas.

Suddenly, a strange warm buzzing flooded his senses and he blinked, a blossom of golden light blooming before his eyes and swamping his vision.

* * *

_A pair of pained, soulful green eyes looked into his, covered by long, blond bangs. "Take care of him for me..." _

* * *

"SHIT!" Kaiba swerved to narrowly avoid a streetlight. He brought the car safely back into the lane, swearing colorfully and gripping the steering wheel with white knuckles. He gritted his teeth, blinking madly and willing himself to focus on driving.

AGAIN, a vision. His second one today. But the second was no stranger than the first.

He shook his head, feeling a little dizzy but thankfully not any worse for wear. Well, at least he hadn't fainted like the first time. If he had, he might have ended up with more than a totaled car. 'Ha, that'd be a laugh,' he thought to himself. The great Seto Kaiba, CEO of KaibaCorp, dies in a car crash from speeding down a rainy road. A typical teenage mistake, people would say. It wouldn't be how he wanted to go, Mokuba would say sadly.

Shaken, the CEO checked his mirrors and squinted through the waving windshield wipers into the rain beyond. Thankfully, the street was empty.

Kind of.

A blotch of blue against a red building stood out from the dreary gray of the storm. Kaiba saw it out of the corner of his eye and frowned, shifting lanes to get a little closer.

It was a boy. A boy of Domino High, apparently. On closer inspection, it turned out to be Yami huddled in a ball against the side of the building, his leather and school attire soaked to the skin, his once proud hair spikes drooping and dull around his shoulders. He was shivering visibly, hugging his backpack and his knees to his chest, his breath coming out in shallow, shaky exhales.

He looked pathetic.

Kaiba felt his throat tighten. What the hell Yami was doing all the way out here in the middle of a thunderstorm was beyond him, but all Kaiba wanted was to see that beautiful face light up with a brilliant smile and that lithe little body flushed with warmth. Without another thought, the CEO smoothly pulled the car to a stop along the curb. With the press of a button, the passenger window lowered, and sprays of rain came pouring in to the velvet and leather insides of the car. "Get in." His voice was tight but thankfully unwavering.

Yami's head snapped up at the sudden words, squinting through the rain at the strange, sleek car that had pulled up in front of him. The Pharaoh felt a little bit of fear. He had already mind crushed two bastards that tried to 'help' him by groping him --after the incident with Bakura and the two students in class, Yami wasn't too fond of groping-- and now some weird guy in a fancy car expects him to just jump in?

"You're soaking. Get. IN."

The voice was smooth, deep and flowing, ringing a bell in Yami's head. The boy choked on rainwater. "Kaiba?!"

"Don't make me repeat my words." There was a click as the door locks opened.

Yami felt his heart race. Kaiba appeared out of nowhere in this storm like a knight in shining armor --or a cool car-- and was suddenly offering him a ride? He must be dreaming...! The Pharaoh stopped himself from nearly giggling. 'Not THAT way, you dolt.' He stood shakily, grabbing his abandoned backpack and edging hesitantly toward the car. His legs were in horrible pain so he more or less limped most of the way.

"What the hell happened to you?" demanded Kaiba without small talk as Yami struggled into the passenger seat, closing the door behind him.

Yami, who had been taking the moment to enjoy the warmth and dryness inside the AWFULLY nice car, trembled at the all-too-familiar question, wincing visibly. He shuddered, rubbing his freezing arms in an effort to work some warmth back in them. "I don't want to talk about it," he mumbled, feeling his cheeks flush.

Kaiba pursed his lips, frowning. Somehow, Yami's answer bugged him. He didn't like things being hid from him, and considering this must be revolving around Yami's well-being, he REALLY wanted to know. "Fine," he snorted finally, swallowing his curiosity and worry.

Rolling up the window, he absentmindedly snapped at Yami to put on his seat belt --he himself wore one out of habit to be a good example for Mokuba-- and pulled the car back into the road. [2]

Yami picked at his wet clothes, squirming in his seat. He looked at Kaiba, rather embarrassed. "I'm sorry... I'm getting your car all wet and dirty." As if to prove it, he sneezed once, then again, and coughed right after.

Without looking at him, Kaiba tossed the boy a tissue from one of the dashboard's many compartments. He rested one hand on the top of the steering wheel to drive and pressed a few more buttons on the dashboard, watching with satisfaction as the small blue screen blinked and flashed accordingly. On cue, warm air came billowing out of the car's many vents and onto its two passengers.

Yami blinked in surprise and looked around, startled.

"You need to dry off," explained Kaiba evenly. "You're already sick."

Yami felt his heart flutter. Why was Kaiba being so... nice? Er... nicer than normal, anyway. The boy sniffled against the tissue, almost cooing as the hot air blasted over his soaked clothes. "Wait..." he started suddenly, biting his lip and feeling another blush rise up his neck, "Aren't you going to be hot?"

"I'll be fine," grunted the CEO, and left it there.

Yami ducked his head shyly, shifting awkwardly in his seat and pulling at his damp clothing. This was so... weird. First Kaiba finds him in the middle of a city, offers him a ride, and now is drying him off with the most wonderful air-conditioning system ever known to modern automobiles. It was so... _sweet_.

/Yugi...?/ he mumbled, reaching through the bond if only for the sole purpose of distracting himself from... a certain train of thought. /Tell Sugoroku to just take you home. He doesn't have to come looking for me./

/Yami...?/ His aibou sounded frightened, fearing that Yami was declaring that he was going to commit suicide.

/It's okay, aibou./ Yami glanced at Kaiba out of the corner of his eye, then at the street. Yes, this seemed right... The streets were looking somewhat more familiar than before... /Kaiba's bringing me home./

/KAIBA?/ echoed Yugi, disbelief flooding the bond. There was silence, then a small laugh. /Oh, I see. Well then, make it home in one piece, Yami. And try not to use cars for more than one purpose at a time./ He ended the link with a giggle.

Yami blinked. 'What's THAT supposed to mean?'

* * *

The ride to the Game Shop was thankfully quiet... at least in terms of words. Yami's shivering and coughing got steadily worse, and Kaiba noted that the boy's clothing was not drying as fast as he had hoped. The Game Shop being on the outskirts of the city and them now being stuck in lunch time traffic, the CEO felt his stomach sink as the ride dragged on. If Yami wasn't terribly sick yet, he was about to be.

The Pharaoh was feeling miserable. He had forgotten what it was like to be sick and cold. And granted, he wished that he had permanently forgotten and didn't have to be reminded. 'Ra, how can mortals stand getting sick all the time?!' He fought the urge to sneeze and coughed instead, sniffling miserably as he curled up in his seat. Despite the fact that the heater was blasting, he still shivered and felt like he wasn't warm enough. He winced at the sound of his wet leather clothing squeaking on the dry seat. 'Oh dear, I'm ruining Kaiba's car...' he scolded himself. As if it wasn't enough that he was sitting beside said gorgeous brunette inside the man's beautiful car in the first place.

A blue jacket was suddenly shoved in Yami's face and the Pharaoh blinked in surprise. "What's this for?" he sniffled, glancing at Kaiba who seemed intent on staring at the road.

"Wear mine and take off yours. You'll be warmer," commanded the brunette, voice a bit gruff albeit quiet. He had stripped off his jacket down to his dark, high-necked shirt, the card locket clearly hanging around his neck. Seeing Yami hesitate, he sighed, waving the jacket closer to the boy. "It's rather hot in here anyhow," he mumbled, feeling rather embarrassed.

A cute blush colored the Pharaoh's dark cheeks as he hesitantly accepted the jacket, shrugging off his own. "Thank you," he murmured softly as he tugged the oversized jacket on, cooing in its warmth and dryness.

He didn't catch the blush on Kaiba's face.

* * *

Meanwhile...

"What-- H-How did you get home already?" shrieked Ryou in surprise. He hurriedly closed and locked the front door behind him and turned, arms crossed. "Did you have something to do with blowing up the school?!" he demanded.

Silence.

Ryou frowned.

Bakura was curled up on the couch, ignoring him completely, hugging his legs to his chest and burying his face in his knees. He was shaking.

"Bakura...?" Ryou felt something stab at his heart and he quickly approached, worried. "Are you okay? Are you sick? Hurt anywhere?" He reached out to touch his yami, then thought better of it and sat by him instead, nearly close enough to touch. "...Yami?"

Bakura looked up slightly, more at the ground than anything. He was pale. There was something inside of him, he was sure of it, and quite frankly, he didn't know if he liked it being there. His voice came out a choked whisper, heavy and tight. "Ryou... I think there's something wrong with me..."

* * *

Kaiba and Yami drove on in silence, the brunette occasionally glancing at the Pharaoh out of the corner of his eye to gauge his health. The CEO was pleased to find that the boy hadn't gotten worse and instead was resting quietly, curled up adorably inside a school jacket two sizes too large for him. Kaiba felt an itching on his cheek and fought the urge to smile. "We're here," he said suddenly, before he himself realized it.

Yami perked up, looking out the rain-streaked windows to a dreary, albeit familiar, street. "Oh... The Game Shop..." He could see the light on inside and the familiar outlines of two spiky-haired people inside. 'Sugoroku and Yugi are home...'

The thought was comforting, but not as much as he thought it would be. Quite frankly, the Pharaoh would much rather stay inside the car. It was, after all, a very nice car, all warm and toasty... Not to mention the driver was only the hottest guy alive. Plus there was a good dozen feet between the car and the Game Shop, the whole way wet, gloomy and cold.

Awkward silence settled over the car when Yami made no move to leave the car and Kaiba made no move to drive away.

"I... um... guess I should be going then. Thanks for the ride," mumbled Yami finally, summoning up his courage and opening the door to the freezing cold tempest outside. 'Good RA, its cold.'

"Wait."

A hand on his shoulder made him jump a little, and he looked back at Kaiba with a vivid blush.

The CEO seemed to be blushing himself.

Blinking, a thousand thoughts ran through Yami's mind, most of them borderline inappropriate. His heart leapt to his throat, fluttering. 'Ra, is he going to...?'

Kaiba struggled for words and in the end, he regained control of his arm, patting Yami awkwardly and quickly before retracting the limb. "Just... don't get stuck in any more rainstorms."

**Oh, suddenly, these emotions are in control of my heart...  
Can you see it in my eyes...?  
Every glance, every smile... must give me away...!   
'Cause I feel so much, I can't hide!**

**And I don't know what I'm doing anymore!  
I'm feeling like a little girl...   
Caught up in emotions, I'm out of control...!  
Isn't it obvious...?**

Yami blinked, cheeks still rosy. "Yeah..." he mumbled finally, a little crestfallen and bashing himself inside for getting his hopes up, "I won't." With that, he stumbled out of the car, shut the door behind him, and scrambled to the shop, hugging his jacket and book bag to himself.

The door opened before he reached it and Yugi stood leaning against the doorway, looking quite smug. The boy grinned. "I think he likes you."

* * *

[1] - I don't know SQUAT about kendo so therefore I am making everything up. Sorry if anyone is terribly offended; this is the only chapter kendo's going appear in anyhow, so you guys won't have to suffer from my lack of knowledge in martial arts.

[2] - I'm making such a big deal about Kaiba driving cuz I DROVE FOR THE FIRST TIME THIS WEEK! HAHA! (I don't even have my permit but SHHHH, you don't know that!) My dad took me to a big empty parking lot and made me go around for an hour (I did get the hang of turning really well, he said, but I also forgot the blinking light thingy every time). Then he made me drive out on to the road to the library, which was a good few miles away with lots of turns and stuff. I was scared as all hell, but there wasn't really anyone on the road (someone pulled out of a driveway though) and I didn't crash or run any red lights. :-p YAY FOR ME!! (Just so you know, I THINK I'm making Kaiba older than the others --around 18-ish, just like the dubbed version-- so therefore, except for gym, he has different classes and can probably drive, while the others cannot. I don't know the driving age limit in Japan, so I'm basing it off America's, which is 16 for the permit and 17 for the license.)

AN: THERE. A long chapter. :-p Hope you guys are happy. Sorry, I kinda rushed through the whole latter half so I'm sorry if it's not very descriptive (I did like the first half though :-p). I was getting tired anyhow. And this chapter was actually a lot longer than I planned; Bakura's 'attack' was not planned and I was meaning to just plop in a very short few sentences about it, but I got carried away and tossed in Horus and groping and all the things about running across the city. (And oh yes, Kaiba's car IS still a convertible; the top just went up when it rained. :-p Just so you guys didn't think I screwed up or anything.)

Oh, I'm leaving the country (FOR AUSTRALIA!! HAHAHA!) after July 9th and I'll be back say... July 30th. Therefore, this is probably the last chapter of DC I'll update until August, and I'm very very sorry for that. Thanks for all the support so far, guys! Thanks for being so patient and just in case I don't update for a month, don't kill me!

NOTE: For those of you that haven't already, check out my new story 'Le Coeur De La Mer'! -- title's French. Anyhow, it's a Seto/Yami fic placed in France/England (Seto's a British Commodore and Yami's a prince). :-p Two chapters up so far; I'm hoping to update it one more time before I go!


	7. NEW Look At Me

First off, HAPPY NEW YEARS!! XD Wow, 2004 went by fast. And it still hasn't really SNOWED here yet, dammit.

Second off, I apologize for the extreme lateness! This chapter was a huge massive pain to write. I didn't have as much fun writing it as chapter 6, so thus I'm fairly certain its not nearly as good. The first section is very very boring (at least in my opinion) cuz it's a lot of talk and stuff between characters, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't work my way around it because SOMEthings just HAVE to be explained. -sweatdrop- I apologize if this chapter is a lot worse than the last. I had a few problematic brain freezes in the middle of writing it (another reason why this took so long) and I am just so sick of staring at this thing. I hope its not TOO terrible... The second part was fluff, cuz I figured I needed some more romance to keep you guys satisfied. And plus, you need a calm, sweet chapter before the next one I have planned cuz LOADS of things happen in that one that might not make too many people happy. -GRIN- My my, I do love the power of an authoress...

P.S. I HAVE SIMPLIFIED MY WRITING! Oo I've decided to take Soraki's advice and cut down on the long, run-on sentences with lots of commas. Albeit, I think there's many still in there (I can't write WITHOUT them, mind you) but I tried to change my style a little bit so it wasn't so hard to read. Hopefully shorter sentences without the awkward phrasing will help you guys a lot!

**oooooooooooooooooo**  
/.../ mindlink connection (between aibou's and yami's)

'...' personal thoughts

:::...::: translated ancient Egyptian

...thought speak (for gods only; assumed to be Egyptian but understood by all)

"..." spoken dialogue (if in English, assumed to be Japanese)

_lots of italics_ dreams/flashbacks/visions

**bold** song lyrics

footnotes

AN author's note  
**oooooooooooooooooo**

**CHAPTER DISCLAIMER**: The featured song of this chapter is "Staring You In The Face" by the Eric Stuart Band, which is lead by (you guessed it) Eric Stuart, ironically the talented voice actor of Seto Kaiba (and a ton of other people in all different anime shows) in the English dubbed version of YGO. Isn't that cool?

**oooooooooooooooooo**

"I'll be here..."

"Why?"

"I'll be waiting here..."

"For what?"

"I'll be waiting for you... so if you come here... you'll find me. I promise..."

_(quote from FINAL FANTASY VIII)_

**oooooooooooooooooo**

**oooooooooooooooooo**

CHAPTER SEVEN: Look At Me

**oooooooooooooooooo**

"He left his jacket," stated Yami suddenly after Yugi had ushered him in and began to pamper over him.

Yugi gave him a strange look as he took his yami's backpack and jacket, the wetter and smaller of the two that the Pharaoh currently had in his possession. "Well then, you should return it sometime." Though the boy kept his voice even and innocent, Yami caught the hidden message in his words and glared heatedly at him.

"Ah, Yami, you're back!" Sugoroku flashed him a quick smile from behind the counter, stacking some boxes of cards away. "Good. We were getting worried."

Yami grunted a greeting, gulping down some milk. It melted its way down his throat and settled comfortably in his stomach. The sensation made him cough and wrinkle his nose miserably.

His hikari, cradling his stuff like some miniature mother hen, sent the Pharaoh a pitying look. With difficulty, the boy pointed upstairs. "You. Shower. NOW."

**oooooooooooooooooo**

Freshly dressed and armed with a fresh batch of tissues, Yami gingerly made his way down the hall with a towel on his wet hair and Kaiba's jacket tossed over his shoulder. Though the shower had warmed him considerably, his legs still hurt from overuse and were rather... lagging. Thus, his limp.

Despite this, however, he steadily approached his and Yugi's joint bedroom and was surprised to hear voices coming from inside; one, a bubbling high tenor --Yugi-- followed by a mellow male voice and a soft woman's.

"Ha, I would pay to see the guy's face!" Yugi was saying, laughing. "He must have thought that he was going crazy!"

"On the contrary, actually," sniffled the woman's voice, "He thought that everyone else is going crazy. He's spent the past two days trying to convince everyone that there was a missing mummy when they all know that there was no mummy in the first place. Or so they think."

"Man, I didn't think you would do such a thing!" laughed Yugi. "That's just plain evil, tampering with people's memories!"

"Or leaving them untouched," murmured the woman, her voice dripping with pride.

"If I didn't know better, I'd say she enjoys playing with people's minds," commented the man, chuckling.

"You certainly do!" accused the woman.

Yami frowned, limping his way into the room. He stiffened once he entered. "You." He looked around, eyes widening. "BOTH of you."

Ishizu and Shadi looked up from where they had been talking with Yugi on the bed. Spotting Yami, they both scrambled up and bowed deeply. "Pharaoh..."

Yami waved dismissively for them to stand. "What are you two doing here?" he asked, sighing. He suddenly felt overwhelmingly tired, like some old man that was short of breath. "No wait, scratch that. If you're both here, that means there's some rampaging, man-eating demon on the loose that you want me to catch."

The two Item holders looked at each other sheepishly.

"Actually, we didn't plan to come here together at all," started Ishizu, frowning.

"I came to Yugi's school after I sensed your attack, your majesty." Shadi explained quietly, "I cleansed the minds of the students and teachers and made it so that the whole attack seemed like an accident, but even I do not know the reason behind what happened."

"And I came to the school as fast as I could after I sensed that some source was broadcasting uncontained magic," murmured Ishizu, apologetically. She shook her head, her frown deepening. "My Necklace did not warn me of any of the events that happened today. I admit I did not arrive in time to witness the attack, nor was Shadi or I able to track you down after we met up with Yugi."

Yami's head hurt. He made his way over to the bed and sat, head buried in his hands. He sighed, half-heartedly tossing the towel away as he shrugged Kaiba's jacket back on. He might as well relish in its presence before he suffered a nervous breakdown. "Wait, so let me get this straight," he mumbled after a long moment, looking up with blood-shot eyes, "You two couldn't sense me either? At all?"

Shadi and Ishizu exchanged a glance, then nodded.

Yugi perked up. "That's right! I couldn't contact Yami until nearly a half an hour after the school blew up!"

Wincing at his hikari's word choice, Yami frowned, his head spinning with this new information. So it hadn't been just him... During the attack, he had obviously been cut off from the magic world by some sort of 'bubble'... He hadn't been able to contact anyone outside, and Yugi, Ishizu and Shadi hadn't been able to contact him inside. Now the confusing thing was exactly _how_ one could isolate the most powerful sorcerer in the world from the powers of the Millennium Items themselves. It was no easy task --that was for certain. Yami inwardly shuddered; the strength needed to pull off such a task must be... beyond imagination. That was a scary thought.

"Are you well, your majesty?" asked Ishizu, breaking his thoughts. Her eyes held genuine concern. "I apologize... neither Shadi or I could not sense the source of the danger. But after we couldn't contact you, we hurried here, fearing the worst."

Yami rubbed his pounding temple. "Wait, go back... Ishizu, your Necklace didn't show you _any_ of this? It didn't show the attack beforehand or where I was or anything? And Shadi, you had vision of any of this? No foresight?"

Again, both Item holders shook their head, shame in their eyes.

A tense, dreadful silence settled over them all.

Yami felt his stomach sink. So it must be true... Whatever had isolated him from the rest of the world was apparently quite capable of avoiding the powers of Millennium Items altogether. It had somehow _neutralized_ both the Scale's and the Necklace's powers while, at the same time, rendered him powerless. The Pharaoh's brow furrowed, his heart skipping a beat. As far as he knew, that wasn't _possible_! Nothing in existence could match his strength or the strength of the Items... Nothing!

"Yami, why don't you tell us what happened," said Yugi gently, watching his yami carefully and feeling a tad bit worried at the sudden paleness of the boy's normally dark cheeks.

Yami's eyes rose quickly, alarmed. Yugi was startled to find a hint of fear in the Pharaoh's usually fiery red eyes. Immediately, the smaller boy meandered over to the bed and sat by his yami, wrapping a reassuring arm around the former spirit. "Tell us, Yami," he whispered.

A visible shudder ran through Yami's thin body and he rubbed his face with shaky hands. "I... I was in the locker room a-and..." His voice shook, then lowered to near inaudible levels. "Bakura attacked me."

Stunned silence.

Ishizu and Shadi exchanged startled, unreadable glances.

Yugi's eyes widened.

Almost embarrassed, Yami continued quickly, "I-I didn't sense him coming, and the next thing I knew he was... he was..." He trailed off, eyes distant.

"He was what, your majesty?" asked Ishizu slowly, voice gentle but deathly quiet.

Yami shuddered, eyes closing tightly as if fighting away the mere memory. :::He was ..._molesting_ me...::: he whispered shakily, in Egyptian so to spare his aibou's ears. :::That was why I attacked. I-I had to, to defend myself. He _wouldn't_ let me go...::: He was so shaken inside he felt ready to cry, though he fought the urge with all his might.

Identical looks of alarm appeared on both Ishizu and Shadi's faces, their bodies stiffening like statues of stone.

The priestess gasped in horror, her eyes wide with disbelief. :::The tomb robber?! He _wouldn't_...!:::

Shadi's gray eyes flashed with fury and he cursed vehemently in the ancient tongue, his mellow features giving way to pure, protective rage. His Key and the Scale in his belt began to glow, reacting to his anger.

Yami was a bit unnerved by the intensity of his priests' reactions. Ishizu and Shadi were the two most rational people he knew, but right now, they were clearly ready to hunt down and kill the being who dared to commit such an atrocious sin against their king.

In a way, Yami was touched. This was how the two guardians were supposed to react, how they were _built_ to react. After all, they were the flesh and blood manifestations of two of Yami's loyal High Priests from three millennia ago --reborn into this world with the same purpose they had in ancient Egypt: to protect Pharaoh. Even in this life, when their Pharaoh was a somewhat-normal teenager in Japan, Ishizu and Shadi had vowed to be his guardians once more and to save their king from all possible dangers... even at the cost of their own lives.

And despite everything, Yami suddenly felt much better. He wasn't alone in this, he had to remember. He had his hikari, his mortal friends, and more than enough guardians willing to die for him. As selfish as it seemed, the thought was reassuring.

On the other hand, Yugi glanced between the three Egyptians, outraged. "Hey, wait, no WAY you guys are leaving me out on this!"

Glancing at his aibou apologetically, Yami continued quickly. :::I also had a vision.:::

At his words, Ishizu perked up and Shadi's anger gave way to confusion.

:::It was... odd, like none I've ever had. I was with this... this _being_... and--::: Yami hesitated. Perhaps he should leave out some... _things_ about that vision. Telling Ishizu and Shadi about Bakura was bad enough, but after all, it DID happen. This... _vision_, or whatever it is, could just be a very untimely wet dream sparked by whatever spell that the demon had cast. Disgusting as the thought was, Yami would have preferred such a simple explanation. Deep inside, however, he knew it was much more complicated. :::This _creature_...::: He furrowed his eyebrows, struggling to remember that flash of images and sounds. :::He was powerful. _Very_ powerful... and very old...:::

:::What... KIND of being?::: Ishizu asked carefully.

Yami glanced at her, clearly frustrated. :::I don't know! I-It looked like some kind of beast.::: He waved his hands as if to mold an image out of thin air. :::Some animal head with a man's body. Dark skin... Weird ears, almost box-shaped, and with some red hair or some red fur or something... And he had fangs, I think, or really sharp teeth...::: The Pharaoh shuddered. Ra, and what those fangs can _do_... He shook his head, shakily. :::I'm sorry,::: he mumbled, :::I didn't see him all that clearly.:::

:::He had no name?:::

Yami focused for a second before he sighed. :::None that I called him by.::: He looked at his two guardians. :::What does this mean?:::

He didn't expect an answer, nor did he get one.

The three Egyptians fell silent, deep in thought. Shadi began to pace, brow furrowed over his troubled gray eyes. Ishizu settled her delicate chin on a slender hand as her mind raced. Yami curled up on the bed and hugged his knees, snuggling unconsciously into Kaiba's jacket as he sought its comfort. Yugi, rather upset about being left out, thankfully had enough sense not to interrupt the silence.

After a long moment, Yami closed his eyes and rested his forehead against his knees. He hadn't really analyzed his vision up until now, having been too preoccupied by his escape and Kaiba's er... timely rescue. 'A animal head with a human body... Box-shaped ears... Dark skin... Fangs... Red hair...' He shuddered. The description sounded a lot like one of the ancient gods... One in particular. One terrible, horrible being that no sane Egyptian, not even the Pharaohs, dared to mess with.

Startled scarlet eyes suddenly snapped open. :::He called me Horus...!::: Yami croaked, remembering the deep, lustful voice that dared to whisper such a sacred name. He let out a dry laugh of disbelief. :::'Horus', of all things...!::: he murmured bitterly.

Shadi stopped briefly to look at him, face stolid. :::A common term for Pharaohs, sire. Perhaps he was confused--:::

:::No,::: Yami's voice was clear but shaky. :::No. Just 'Horus'. Not 'Morning Star', not 'Horus-on-Earth', not 'living-Horus'... Just 'Horus'. I am sure of it.:::

Shadi frowned for a minute, then resumed pacing.

:::Let us speak of this outside,::: Ishizu said quietly, suddenly standing and leaving the room without another word.

The two Egyptian men looked at her retreating back silently, startled. Then as one, they got up and followed her without question.

"Wait. Yami! Shadi! You can't just _not_ tell me!" cried Yugi, rushing after them. "What if--?"

Yami turned to stop him, eyes sad and troubled. "Aibou, I swear, I will tell you... but not now."

Yugi's violet eyes were both hurt and furious. "Its something serious, isn't it? Something bad's going to happen to you, and you won't tell me!" His voice was rising an octave, sounding panicked.

Yami winced visibly, his headache now pounding with every rising sound of his hikari's voice.

His gray eyes warm and gentle, Shadi stepped in smoothly. "We need to speak about some things that you will not understand, little one. I'm sure that when we figure something out, His Majesty will tell you." The man glanced over his shoulder at Yami, raising an eyebrow. 'Right?' his gaze was asking.

Yami sent him a tiny nod, looking away. Yes, he would tell Yugi... in time. But until he understood what was going on, it would be a very long time before Yugi would. It did hurt though. The Pharaoh loved his hikari very much, and he would never willingly cause the boy pain.

He sent his aibou one last, apologetic look before turning to go. /I'm sorry, aibou... but now is not the time./ He could feel Yugi's hurt and frustration following him the whole way outside.

**oooooooooooooooooo**

:::Tell me. _Now_.::: Yami finally demanded after they had scrambled outside and into a nearby alleyway. The rain had stopped, but the sky was still overcast with a depressing sea of gray clouds. Shivering, Yami brought Kaiba's jacket closer around his shoulders, glad for more than one reason that he had it.

Ishizu turned her ageless blue eyes on to him, tiredly. She took a deep breath. :::You saw a vision of the gods. That much is clear.:::

_Gods_.

Yami shuddered violently at the mere word. He had thought so, but he didn't dare _believe_... :::Sweet Nut... Are you serious?::: He glanced at Ishizu's solemn expression and then at Shadi, who avoided eye contact.

It had been three thousand years since any of them, Bakura and Malik included, worshipped the gods. Three millennia since any of them bowed down before statues of the great immortals or offered sacrifices in the name of Egypt. Thirty centuries since they last heard tales of the great deeds in the heavens.

The question hung in the air; HOW...? How and why, in the mist of modern day cities and a worldwide population of monotheists, were their ancient gods popping up once again? Surely the deities must have abandoned this wretched world long ago with the deaths of the last ancient Egyptians. _Surely_.

Yami snorted. That the gods could be sending him visions was simply so... _hard_ to believe. Impossible, even.

That didn't mean he didn't believe in the gods. Even after three thousand years, he was still their devout follower, just like any good Pharaoh should be. It was just that... well, even in his day, the gods were just figments of the heavens, beings with powers beyond mortal comprehension. Even the Pharaohs were below the gods, unable to see or speak with them beyond 'visions' that didn't come half the time. Whether you were an Egyptian king or an Egyptian tomb robber, you could have tried as hard as you could to reach up to the heavens and would have never made it there. You could have built many monuments or none at all, but the chance of you meeting a god was still next to nil. And the Afterlife... Well, Yami's never been there, so he wouldn't know.

:::Alright. So the vision was about gods. What does that tell me?::: Yami was surprised at how even his voice was.

Ishizu refused to meet his gaze and squirmed in place. :::Well... nothing. It could have been a dream, or perhaps-- :::

:::-- an untimely hallucination,::: finished Shadi, eyes unreadable.

Yami looked at them both for a long moment. He had a feeling that, deep down, they all knew this vision had a lot more importance than what they openly believed. The only problem was that none of them had any idea WHY it was important. The boy sighed. :::So... What do we do?::: he asked finally, feeling extremely awkward to ask such a question.

Both Ishizu and Shadi stared at him, then lowered their gaze again, unable to answer.

Uncomfortable silence settled between them.

Sighing, Yami sank his face into his hands. His fingers rubbed his temples where a headache was quite happily pounding away. Ra, they were doomed. He didn't know what to do. Shadi didn't either. Heck, neither did ISHIZU, who was commonly believed to know everything.

When he finally spoke, the Pharaoh's voice was tired and shaken. :::Look, we can't just stand here. I say we wait. We wait until something else comes up, or until we find some new information... Then maybe we'll talk about it.::: He had absolutely no idea what he was talking about, but ordering around his priests like he used to felt rather... relieving. A familiar feeling in a foreign world that was quickly becoming stranger by the minute.

Ishizu and Shadi, having no ideas of their own, could only nod.

:::But what about you, sire?::: asked Ishizu quietly. :::We cannot leave you unguarded.:::

:::I can take care of myself, thanks,::: Yami sniffled reflexively, but winced as the day's events rolled through his thoughts. He flashed Ishizu a quick smile, :::But I'll be careful.:::

Ishizu nodded innocently.

Yami had no doubt in his mind that she planned to use that Necklace of hers to track his every movement from now on. That was fine. Yami was usually very touchy about his privacy, but he knew Ishizu meant the best. Plus having a pair of eyes watching his back made the Pharaoh feel a little better. Just a _little_.

:::What about Bakura, sire?::: asked Shadi quietly, eyes twinkling with plenty of things he had in mind for the tomb robber.

Yami visibly shuddered with that name. :::I'll... stay away from him...::: He hesitated, unsure. :::But... leave him for now.::: He seemed suddenly so very tired.

At this, both Ishizu and Shadi protested, alarmed.

:::Sire! You are not safe! We should--:::

:::Bakura may not be a trained High Priest, but he has two Items at his disposal and it is highly doubtful he would refrain from harming either one of you. And he fears no one but me.::: Yami swallowed heavily, :::Now I'm not even sure about _that_.::: He hung his head, a tightness growing in his throat. :::Believe or not...::: he whispered, :::I don't think whoever attacked me today was him.:::

His guardians stared at him like he had grown two heads.

The Pharaoh hurried on, throwing his theory --now that it was on the table-- out for them to hear, :::I sensed some strange presence in him today, filled with magic I've never felt before. And... and it did not _feel_ like Bakura. It _wasn't_ Bakura.:::

Now both Priests were sending him looks that clearly stated he wasn't in the right mind.

Finally, however, Shadi consented and sighed. :::Then I shall let him be... but I will watch him carefully, your majesty,::: he added quickly, seeing the deadly glare Ishizu shot him. :::_Very_ carefully.:::

:::And I will be on every alert,::: Ishizu said quietly. :::I shall ask my brother of news in Egypt; perhaps there is a new foe that we do not know about.:::

Yami frowned at the mere thought. :::You do that,::: he said absentmindedly, his head pounding now. :::Thank you both...::: he managed, sending a weary but sincere smile toward them as he touched their shoulders gently. It felt, for the briefest shining moment, like old times. _Very_ old times, that is.

No sooner had his words left his lips, however, the Pharaoh heard Yugi calling from the Game Shop about some meal or other.

His companions heard as well, and both heaved a heavy sigh.

Shadi turned toward Yami, bowing deeply and solemnly. :::I will do as I can, sire. Take care... and be _careful_.::: In a flash of hazy light, he blended into the alley walls.

Ishizu was left with Yami, who was growing increasingly antsy as the woman stood in his only way out. Deep in thought for a long moment, the priestess finally spoke, her eyes twinkling as if she had struck a golden idea. :::There is... another matter I had wished to speak to you about. A favor, if you will.:::

Yami's eyes narrowed in suspicion. :::Another one...? Ishizu, every time I do you a favor, I end up--:::

:::I think you'll find this one quite enjoyable, actually,::: the priestess broke in, grinning. Seeing Yami's wince, she laughed and nodded toward the Game Shop where Yugi was impatiently waiting on the doorsteps. :::Lets go on inside, your majesty. I believe I may have one little part of our 'mystery' solved.:::

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

"Enjoyable?! ENJOYABLE?! I'm going to get my sorry rear kicked by security, that's what!"

Yugi raised an eyebrow, grinning from ear to ear. "Actually, I think it's a good idea. Its time you and Kaiba-kun got to know each other."

Yami turned on him, eyes flaming. "You are not HELPING, aibou."

Yugi cocked his head and grinned some more. "You know you want to," he sang lightly.

"I do NOT! I WILL not! It is an absurd idea, just like every one of Ishizu's 'favors'! It is a waste of my time and--"

"Would you rather be doing homework?"

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

Kaiba often watched the stars nowadays, though he had absolutely no idea why. Sometimes, waking up from those strange nightmares he now so often had, the CEO just liked to look up at the sky and wonder, soothed by the murky vastness of the sky and the ever-present twinkling of millions of brilliant stars. Up there, he knew, everything was wild, free and beautiful, untouched by man. And up there, things were eternal. There was no death, no murder, no evil.

The thought always brought him some inner peace. But recently, it also brought something akin to longing, though he did not know why. Something tore at his heart every time he looked up at those stars, as beautiful as they were. Staring up at the sky's eternal beauty, he felt... well... _empty_. It was an odd and silly feeling and certainly not a welcomed one, but Kaiba quickly found out that the feeling could not be merely shoved aside. And yet, while stargazing, he also found that he could not look away.

Despite his attraction to them, Kaiba did not love the stars. There was something terribly seductive about them, more powerful than any mortal's dream. Many people, young and old alike, have foolishly wasted their precious time wishing upon falling stars and praying to bright constellations. Seto, on the other hand, was not fooled by the sky's beauty. He knew that the stars were nothing but huge spheres of gas. The dark of night was merely the cold, empty vastness of space. The 'falling stars' were nothing but space rocks burning up in the atmosphere. A constellation was nothing but a grouping of stars that had absolutely nothing to do with each other except for the fact that some old guy decided to draw a picture about their placement.

Seto snorted. To him, anyone who believed in the 'mystic power' of the stars was stupid and silly.

Still... he could not help but gaze up at that stunning sky on a clear night, wondering --even briefly-- if some ancient human had gazed upon them millennia ago. Did they speculate, as he did, about the sky's secrets? Not having changed much since ancient times, the stars were eternal, living forever while mortals wasted away on their puny little planet. They awed the little humans of Earth, commanding their fascination and their wonder since the beginning of sentient thought. And despite the fact that he knew it was all folly and childish, Seto could not help but be entranced by the stars' terribly striking beauty.

So here he was, leaning back in his huge chair, staring out the giant windows of his KaibaCorp office. Luckily, being CEO, his personal headquarters was located near the top of the tower where he had a clear view of both a glowing Domino City and the twinkling stars above it. The tower being higher and more distant than most of the other skyscrapers, Seto could shut off his office lights and just stare through the window at the infinite night, silently admiring its depths.

It was moments like these that he relished. Moments where he could, even for just a minute, be a simple boy staring up at the stars and not a CEO overwhelmed with work in a dark office. After all, there was no one with him; no sniveling business man, no annoying secretary, and certainly no uninvited guests. The only thing --person, rather-- that was missing from this rare moment was Mokuba, though Seto doubted his little brother could have suppressed his mountain load of energy enough to sit quietly for more than a few minutes.

The CEO leaned back contently in his chair and exhaled slowly, feeling the tension of the day melt away. Just for a moment, he forgot about the Rod that now laid locked in his briefcase. He forgot about school and the terribly embarrassing incident in gym. He even forgot about the stack of papers by his side that was waiting to be reviewed.

But... but he could not forget about one certain crimson-eyed boy. Lord, he tried, but he simply couldn't.

Seto scanned the sky, finding a brilliant, gold-colored point of light that glowed near the horizon, much brighter than any other stars he could see. The CEO smiled a little, thoughtfully cocking his head.

That star was like Yami. Beautiful, brilliant, and far outshining the others.

RIIIINNNNGGG. RRRRIIINNNNNNNGGGGGGG.

Train of thought violently broken, Seto jumped at the shrill ring. Growling, he glared daggers toward his phone. He sighed after a moment and picked it up. Business rarely was done after dark, so this was either this was Mokuba with an emergency, his secretary with a late guest, or...

"Greetings, Mr. Kaiba."

"_Ishizu_," spat Kaiba with liquid venom in his voice. He scooted his chair toward his table as his headache suddenly throbbed anew. Laying his elbow across the table, the CEO rested his aching head on his free hand, sighing heavily as if the sky was falling. "I thought I told you to--"

"I have a proposal for you. A favor... of some sort."

This stopped Kaiba in his tracks. The gears in his head race furiously. Was this a trap? Was this some sick trick? Alas, being a top diplomat, he simply could not resist a business proposal. "... About what?" he asked carefully, very slowly.

"About your little incident this morning with the Millennium Rod."

Kaiba blinked, then growled. He had half a mind to ask her how she knew, but this being Ishizu, he decided that it was just a waste of energy to do so. "What _about_ it?" he asked after a moment, voice dangerously soft.

"You have the Item in your possession," continued Ishizu calmly, sensing his defensiveness, "So of course, you need to learn how to wield it."

Kaiba started at this proposition. Quite frankly, the thought never occurred to him. He bit his lip, his mind racing. Frowning to himself, he spat out quickly, "Look, I don't need some hocus-pocus _magic _trick to get me through life. Without that blasted stick of yours, I have _enough _things to worr--"

"This isn't just about you, Kaiba," snapped Ishizu, angrily. "If you do not learn how to control that Rod --which, I remind you, is rightfully YOUR responsibility and yours ALONE-- then you are a danger to all of us. Your brother _especially_."

Kaiba hesitated, very briefly. That had not occurred to him either, and for just a moment, it worried the wits out of him. "A danger?" he hissed indignantly, "Who do you think you are, telling me I can't control--"

"I can help you with your problem," continued Ishizu without missing a beat, ignoring his protest, "I can send someone to teach you how to use the Rod. Someone that knows plenty about the Millennium Items and how to wield them."

"Look, I don't want to _wield_ anything, and I don't _need_ to," stated Kaiba, annoyance and exasperation laced in every one of his words.

"So you're willing to put Mokuba in danger? Is that it?" Ishizu's voice was somewhat frustrated and just a bit teasing.

That struck a nerve. Kaiba's eyes twitched, but again, he hesitated. Was he? The Rod was possibly driving him clinically mad, and if it didn't quit its odd glowing habit, Kaiba wasn't sure what else it _could_ do.

So he was stuck. He could either remain stubborn and proud as he was and refuse to do anything about the situation --of _course_ he could handle it!-- or, Lord forbid, he could listen to Ishizu. He was _very_ hesitant to do the latter, and was _very_ tempted to do the former. Still, Ishizu certainly knew how to press his buttons. By bringing Mokuba into this whole deal, she left Kaiba with no options, whether he opted to believe in the powers of this magical stick thingy or not.

Gritting his teeth, Kaiba steeled himself and rubbed his throbbing temple with tense fingers. "Just... tell me what I need to do," he murmured finally.

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

"ABSOLUTELYnot."

"Oh, come now, Mr. Kaiba, don't you think your childish rivalry with him has gone far enough?"

"_Childish_?! Our 'rivalry' includes life-and-death encounters! How DARE you call it 'childish'!"

"YOU, Mr. Kaiba, are the one being childish. Now listen to me carefully. His Majesty will be coming over tomorrow to being teaching you about the Rod, WHICH, as I must always remind you, is a dangerous force if you do not learn to control its powers."

"This is preposterous! Ishizu, as well _founded_ as your intentions are, I have a company to run and a little brother to take care of. I have no time to waste on silly little magic lessons."

"Taking care of that little brother includes taking care of yourself so that you may BE there to TAKE care of him. But if you do not control the Rod, it will _destroy_ you, as it nearly did my brother. Do I make myself clear?"

Stunned silence.

"You have already felt the power of the Rod over you, haven't you, Mr. Kaiba?"

An angry growl.

"Its powers are very strong, but they _can_ be bent to your will if you would only _try_."

A stubborn scoff.

"Please, Mr. Kaiba, think logically. The Rod is powerful and dangerous unless its powers are contained!"

"You fail to convince me."

A sigh. Ishizu was quiet for a moment. "Tell me... Do you look at the stars, Mr. Kaiba?"

Sudden intake of breath. Another growl. "Wait, what does that--"

"Answer the question, Mr. Kaiba. Do you?"

Kaiba sputtered, choosing his words carefully. "Well ...yes, but many people--"

"Would you like to know why?"

More silence. Confusion, then disbelief.

"The Rod holds many secrets, Mr. Kaiba, all of which are yours to reveal. And while you may not like him, Yami is the best option we have for someone to help you along your way."

Even more silence.

"I hate to ask this, why can't you teach me whatever it is you want me to learn?"

"I am not powerful enough; the Necklace is a passive Item, while the Rod and the Puzzle are used for fighting. I also have my duties as a museum curator, as well as the current overseer of a tomb's excavation. The Pharaoh, on the other, is the most powerful being in existence and he's had more than three thousand years of experience over me. And --just your luck-- he is currently a student of Domino High, LIKE YOU, and thus has just about the same schedule."

"I forget. Where does a multi-billion dollar company fit in to HIS schedule?"

"Your company is _thriving_, Mr. Kaiba, and it is well made and sturdy. For once, let your staff take care of it. Believe it or not, I believe that is their job."

Silence once again.

Hesitation this time.

"Please, Mr. Kaiba. You _must_... Otherwise those dreams will never stop."

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

_"Oh, Seto... she's gone! Mama's gone!" Sobs. Anguish._

_Stunned silence. An awkward embrace._

_Those lovely red eyes looked up, wide, tearful and in pain. "Seto, w-what do I do? What do I do?!"_

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

_:::Why isn't she breathing...? Papa, what--?:::_

_A soft sob. :::She's gone, Seto... By Ra, she's gone...:::_

_:::... What?! What do you mean, Papa?::: Fear. Denial. Hope. :::I mean, she can't be gone. She was just talking to me last night, telling me a story! She can't be--::: _

_:::Seto... Your mother's gone.::: The man's voice was tired, filled with grief. :::And she's not coming back...:::_

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

_:::I didn't even get to say goodbye...::: A sniffle. :::And she just... LEFT.:::_

_A slender body pressed against his, warm and soft. :::Shhh, Seto...::: A gentle embrace. A loving whisper. :::Its okay to cry...::: _

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

Kaiba awoke a mess of tears, gasps and pants. He could still feel his angel's body pressed against his... He could still touch that soft hair, that honeyed skin... He could still hear that soft voice bringing love and hope to what had seemed to be a very painful situation.

Ra, he hurt inside. For a moment, Kaiba felt so damn _alone_ in this massive bed and this massive bedroom. So alone it was PAINFUL. Suddenly, more than anything in the world, he wished he had someone by his side. Mokuba maybe. Just someone. Someone warm to hold, someone he could wake up with, someone he could lay beside.

But his memory, like always, began to fail, slowly pulling the precious face of his angel away from him. And the bed, like always, contained only Kaiba. There was no lover's form cuddled by his side and no lover's soft breathing to lull him back to sleep. And his arms, like always, remained empty. There was nothing but air in his embrace.

Ishizu's words came back to him, mournful and sad. "_The dreams will never stop..._"

Biting back a sob, Kaiba covered his face with shaking hands. Lord, what was wrong with him?

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

"Yami."

"Kaiba."

The two duelists regarded each other with open suspicion, tension sparkling between them. Dressed in his typical black leather attire, Yami stood uneasily at the doorway, having just been placed there by a secretary. Dressed in a white suit with a blue tie, Kaiba was on the other side of the room, as far as one could be from the door. He was leaning forward in his chair, elbows against his office table and long fingers resting against his pale lips in a contemplating way. His face stolid, the CEO's blue eyes were bloodshot, intense and piercing as they focused on the object of both his desires and far too many problems to count.

Yami shifted awkwardly as he looked about the large room. So clean that it nearly glowed, the massive room was professional and impressive, neat down to the fibers in the carpet. An expansive, immaculate white rug embroidered with a silver dragon adored the middle of the smooth stone floor --which, Yami presumed, was probably real white marble. In blue-white china vases placed in each corner, delicate miniature trees grew in the pose of twisted, frozen dancers, overflowing with the lovely smell of jasmine. Glorious sunlight poured in from one side of the room where, raised a few steps upward like a balcony, one wall had been replaced entirely with tinted glass. Deep blue silk curtains hung limply on either side of the windows, revealing a breath-taking view of downtown Domino. Kaiba himself sat at a magnificent oak table on the far side of the office, his broad frame encased in the intimidating form of a huge leather chair. Behind him on the wall was a wide, blank plasma screen capable of putting every large TV to shame. Slightly off center on his desk was a flat-screen computer, turned slightly toward Kaiba and noticeably away from entering personnel. It was connected to his sleek, ever-present personal laptop by the man's right elbow. There was very little else on the desk save a neat stack of papers on one side, a flat black phone system and a silver penholder. On closer inspection, the rather expensive-looking pen in that holder was engraved with a tiny metallic dragon, no doubt made in real silver.

"...Nice office," the Pharaoh commented casually, keeping his voice even. Receiving nothing but a dark glare from the CEO, the boy frowned and made his way across the plush carpet to massive window. Pressing one hand against the dark glass, he looked down, eyes sparkling. "Wow. Nice view, too."

"Why are you here?" asked Kaiba suddenly, voice gruff. It was a stupid question, they both knew, but it effectively broke Yami's awkward attempts to make small talk.

Yami sent him his own glare, his eyes troubled. "Ishizu said you needed my help..." he whispered, then bit his lip. Apparently he was no more knowledgeable about this whole situation than Kaiba was.

As still as a statue, the CEO looked at him for a long time. Sighing, he finally stood and made his way toward the window, stopping not far from Yami. Like a proud king overlooking his domain, the man then hooked his hands behind his back and stood to his full height, basking in the glowing afternoon sun. His blue eyes flashed eerily in the light.

Yami glanced at him quickly out of the corner of his eyes, unable to resist the temptation. The CEO was a striking sight, tall and handsome in the sparkling sunlight. Blushing a little, the Pharaoh followed Kaiba's gaze and took in the splendid sight of downtown Domino. Slender, elegant skyscrapers broke the city's manmade horizon, sparkling gloriously in the sun. Tiny people at work and cars of all sorts bustled about at the base of these tall buildings; high above them, a distant jet roared past, sleek and tiny.

This was the modern world at its best. Yami felt a pang of wistfulness, wondering if, as Pharaoh, he once had this magnificent of a view to an equally magnificent world... albeit one long dead.

For a long time, the two duelists simply stood there, not talking, touching, or even looking at each other. Kaiba faintly noted that his everlasting headache was suddenly gone, though he quickly shoved this thought to the back of his mind. Instead, he chose to gaze fondly upon the steel empire before him, a kingdom he and KaibaCorp very well built.

Yami finally broke the silence, his voice soft and just a bit hesitant. "Ishizu said you could help me, too."

At this, Kaiba's gaze turned from the city down to the lovely boy by his side. He was speechless. "What?" he croaked finally, coughing to find his voice.

Yami looked up at him briefly and shrugged. "I don't know what she meant, but she said it'll help with... my state of mind. And that by me helping you, it'll help _your _state of mind, whatever that means." He left it at that.

Kaiba blinked and then turned back to the city. He was rather troubled. He and Yami both knew Ishizu too well to question her actions, for they would get no clear answer unless the time was right. He spoke after a while, quickly and flatly. His tone was no different from the one he used on visiting businessmen. "Fine, then. In that case, I'll help you."

Yami nodded, pleased.

Kaiba reached out to touch the window, reaching not so much for Domino but for that wondrous sky. "Under one condition," he whispered, his expression dazed and dreamy.

Yami looked up at him with wide eyes quite like Yugi's. "What?"

Kaiba hesitated and looked down at him with a dry smile. "You have to tell me why I keep looking at the stars."

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

"What first?' asked Kaiba finally, looking far weary for his age. He had set both of them in chairs around his table, himself in his large black one behind the desk and Yami facing him in a smaller one fitted for visiting businessmen.

Yami hesitantly bit his lip, eyes darting across the table that now seem far too big between them.

With hands clasped calmly and diplomatically on top of the desk, Kaiba raised a thin eyebrow. "Don't tell me you don't know what you're doing."

"Look," scoffed Yami, a bit irritably, "I'm a duelist, not a teacher. And plus I've had three thousand years to fiddle around with Shadow Powers, while you have no experience and no known magical abilities. And this whole thing was on kind of a short notice, if you know what I mean."

Kaiba frowned, his own anger surging. "So do you know what you're doing or not?" he demanded, "Otherwise, you're wasting my time. I have work to do."

Yami's eyes narrowed and he pursed his lips in vivid annoyance. Ishizu had warned him that Kaiba was quite unwilling to do this, and quite frankly, so was Yami. Rage surged through him. He didn't want to be here! Kaiba didn't want to be here either. And all in all, he had very little idea how to teach anyhow.

Biting his lip, the Pharaoh closed his eyes and counted to ten. Then to twenty. With his temper tenuously in check, he opened his eyes again and met Kaiba's glare. He steadied his voice in the harshest tone he could manage against those deadly, beautiful blue eyes. "Alright then. Fine. I'll go since you obviously don't want me here." He flinched visibly at his own words, but hid it as he stood.

Something flashed in Kaiba's eyes with that statement. Those words stung like a slap to the face. Did Yami truly feel that way...? Was he being that big of a pain in the ass? "No, wait," he started, much too quickly.

Yami was startled but did indeed stop, looking down at Kaiba with a bit of bewilderment.

Kaiba looked at him with unreadable eyes, his throat tightening in awkwardness. He swallowed heavily and cursed himself. "No. Stay," he managed finally, voice gruff and uncomfortable. His tone softened slightly. "...Please."

**Open your eyes, see what you're missing.  
Open your eyes, see what you're missing.**

Now thoroughly confused but inwardly delighted, Yami slowly sank back down in his seat. Again, awkwardness quickly saturated the air between them and the boy looked away uneasily, heat rising up his neck. "Why the sudden change of mind?" he asked quietly, finally.

Kaiba soaked up the question. He felt horror rise from his stomach, threatening to choke him. Lord, what would he say? 'I enjoy your company?' 'You're absolutely gorgeous?' "I--" he started uneasily, then sighed heavily, "I need to know how to control this thing. For Mokuba's sake... and for mine," he added quickly. The CEO winced when he remembered just how much _control_ that bloody gold stick had over him. If Ishizu's words were to be believed, that is.

Head cocking to the side, Yami looked at him strangely but thankfully didn't question him any further. The boy coughed a little, holding out his hand expectantly, "The Rod?"

Frowning deeply, Kaiba swooped down behind his desk and came up with his ever-present silver briefcase. With a futuristic and handy '_ping_!', it popped open. Kaiba flinched visibly when he saw the content inside. "You're lucky I didn't melt this thing," he muttered, more to himself than Yami.

Quickly, he dumped the Rod unceremoniously on the table and then put away his briefcase. Turning back to Yami, he dully noted that the boy was staring blankly at the Rod. Kaiba's blue eyes rolled irritably toward the heavens. "Don't tell me you don't know how to use that thing."

Yami looked up at him, glaring. "I received some last minute instructions from Malik yesterday. And I'm a fast learner, so don't you worry." There was that familiar challenge in his flaming eyes that made Kaiba's blood boil, in more ways than one.

"Right," replied the CEO awkwardly, unconvinced but now interested.

They fell into silence, staring first at each other and then at the Rod between them. Finally, cautiously, Yami curled his fingers around the Item and brought it gingerly to himself. His nimble fingertips running lightly over the smooth gold, the Egyptian relished the Rod's heavy weight and its marvelously crafted form. The Items were made well over three thousand years ago, and yet, despite everything, they hadn't aged a bit. The Rod least of all. Effortlessly slipping in tune with the dark magic within him, Yami closed his eyes and let the ancient power of the Rod wash over him, testing it out a little. It was powerful, that much was clear. However, its power was wild, free and untamed, quivering within the Item and just waiting to be released. The sheer force of that energy was impressive, even to Yami. It was little wonder how this innocently-looking object had nearly brought an end to Malik's sanity. Still, one could hardly blame the guy for taking the Item in the first place. Unchecked, the Rod's extraordinary powers were seemingly free for the taking, a temptation not many could let pass.

Kaiba watched the Pharaoh with narrowed eyes, dully fascinated and halfway bored. What the hell was the boy doing?

Yami's hand brushed the Rod's bulbous head, caressing the twin blades fondly. Slowly, very slowly, he activated his powers, feeling the buzzing energy flood through his blood. The Puzzle and his third eye sparkled to life, shining and pulsing with faint life. Warm energy cascaded from Yami's fingers into the Rod, feeding the Item's ravenous appetite carefully and gradually. And slowly, flickering like a sputtering car engine, the Rod slowly began to glow. It seemed timid at first, but soon grew steadily brighter until it matched the gentle glow of the Puzzle and Yami's third Eye.

Fascinated, Kaiba watched intently and uneasily, all too familiar with what damage that little glow can do.

Eyes closed in serene concentration, Yami searched deeper, probing gingerly into the savage power of the Rod. Suddenly, in the dark behind his eyelids, he saw a flash of silver. Startled, the boy stopped instantly, hesitant and alert. The Shadow Realm danced around him, its ancient darkness fluid and graceful.

There! The silver blur came again, faster and closer this time.

Yami sent out a wave of his own magic, bewildered as he tried to analyze this _thing_. 'What the...'

For a brief second, a huge pair of glowing sapphire eyes focused straight on him. Then, suddenly, a mighty pair of jaws rushed toward him with terrifying speed, an ear-splitting roar engulfing the boy's very senses.

With an alarmed cry, Yami pulled violently back into the real world. The Rod slipped out of his fingers and fell like a dead weight on the desk, making a sharp clang as it collided with the wood. The head bounced once and then laid still upon the table, gleaming and sparkling.

Dazed and visibly shaken, Yami opened his eyes.

"What is it?" Kaiba's handsome face swam into view, his blue eyes showing a surprising amount of concern. "What happened?" he demanded.

Yami shook his head to clear it, frowning to himself. He rubbed his forehead and felt the warm glow of his third eye melt away. "I'm... not sure." He looked up at Kaiba, eyes wide. "But... I think there's something _in_ there."

Kaiba raised an eyebrow, his face expressionless. "Really?" he stated rather mockingly. "And just what just what would that be?"

"It looked..." Yami grew distant, his ruby eyes troubled. He looked at Kaiba for a long moment. "Well, it looked like... a _dragon_."

There was a quick flicker of something in Kaiba's brilliant eyes. 'Blue-Eyes...' The CEO rubbed his temple furiously, eyes tightly shut as his mind went flying to all sorts of directions. How? Why? Was it possible? Could it be? 'No. It was nothing but a dream,' he told himself vehemently, 'Nothing more.'

Yami looked at him quietly for a while, brow furrowed. Finally, he stated softly, "You knew this."

Kaiba looked up sharply. His eyes narrowed. "That's _absurd_! I barely know what this bloody thing is called!"

Yami's eyes narrowed as well. "But you know what's in there." He was quiet for a moment. "It's your Blue-Eyes, isn't it?"

Kaiba stiffened visibly but said nothing.

"It escaped from my Puzzle a few days ago. I didn't know where it went." Yami met Kaiba's gaze, eyes gentle but questioning. His message was left unspoken but understood.

"I don't know what you're talking about," said Kaiba quickly, firmly.

Yami pursed his lips. "You were its master, Kaiba, three thousand years ago," he said slowly, "It's only logical that perhaps it came here... to be with you and the Rod." He nodded to himself, pleased with his own logic.

Kaiba looked away, frowning. "No, that's preposterous," he whispered in half-hearted protest, mind racing. But it made sense... It might be _possible_. Just what if -- what _if_-- the dragon was real? Than it must have taken him inside the Rod... which would mean that those weird scenes that kept playing in his head might not be just dreams... which meant his angel might not be just a... a dream... Heavens, what if he was REAL?!

Kaiba felt dizzy. His heart pounded in his ears, his lungs drawing in shallow, shaky breaths. His mind was quickly going into overload. 'Lord. This is too complicated.'

The CEO grabbed the edge of his desk and shook himself back into reality. No. It couldn't be true... This was all a bunch of hocus-pocus. Children's tales.

Sensing denial, Yami wisely held his tongue. After a moment of silence in which he marveled at Kaiba's self-control, the boy sighed, drawing the CEO's attention once more. "This changes my plans drastically. Your dragon won't let me in the Rod without your permission."

Kaiba looked at him for the longest time, mentally debating whether to honestly believe these ludicrous ideas of magic and dragons. His eyes narrowed. "Well then... uh... you... have my permission," he said finally and hesitantly, as if the words felt odd on his tongue. His tone carried his bafflement and his doubts.

"It's not that easy." Yami startled the CEO when he placed the Rod firmly in Kaiba's hands, using his smaller hands to close the man's long fingers over the Item. The touch shot shivers up both their spines, but on their part, neither reacted.

The Pharaoh looked into Kaiba's eyes, making sure he had the man's undivided attention. "Look," he spoke slowly, as if speaking to a child, "I have to talk you through this."

Kaiba eyebrows rose. Wincing, he sent the Pharaoh a withering look.

"Its not that hard," assured Yami gently, thanking Ra that his aibou's patience had rubbed off him, "The Rod will obey your every command, I assure you."

Kaiba's eyes narrowed a little and he remained silence.

Realizing he still held Kaiba's hand, Yami pulled away quickly, flushing a bit as he squirmed in his seat. "Well..." He coughed discreetly to hide the color on his cheeks. "Let's see you activate it."

A blank stare.

"You know... Make it glow," Yami explained gently. He was met with yet another blank stare. The Pharaoh sighed and tapped his own forehead. "It's up here, Kaiba. It's all mental. Think what you want it to do, and the Rod will do it." 'I think...' he added to himself. He was so in tune with his own powers that he no longer needed conscious thought to activate the Puzzle. The case was obviously not so easy with Kaiba.

The CEO stared at him. "It's that easy?" he demanded quickly. He was annoyed that the bloody Rod had driven him insane when he had such potential power over it in the first place.

Yami hesitated. "Well... no," he admitted sheepishly, "but it's nice to think about it that way."

Kaiba looked down at the Rod in his hand skeptically, half pondering exactly how _weird_ his life has gotten. He was being told to make a stick glow. A bloody _stick_.

Sighing to himself, he held the Rod in his hands and felt it out for the first time. It was smooth, heavy and well balanced, like a good dagger. He traced the eye pattern on the head, then the graceful mini-blades jutting out the sides. Despite their age, both blades were still sharp and showed little wear.

Kaiba cocked his head at the strange object. It was a rather beautiful thing, really...

"That's it," he heard Yami's voice, distant if part of a foggy dream.

Kaiba looked at the Rod some more, suddenly drawn to it... drawn to the way it sparkled, drawn to the tingling feeling he felt in his hand. A sudden warmth washed through him, sparking with crackling energy and making his very blood boil. The odd sensation spread from deep inside him to the extremities of his limbs, making his skin tingle and his senses go hypersensitive.

Startled, Kaiba jerked back into the real world, a painful ringing in his ears. Shaken, he nearly dropped the Rod.

He felt a small hand on his arm and looked up, seeing that Yami had moved to stand beside him. That same hand squeezed reassuringly.

"Its okay." Yami's eyes were warm. "You were doing great. The power you felt might be a little scary at first, but you'll get used to the feeling." Seeing Kaiba's lingering skepticism, the boy flashed him a quick smile. "Trust me."

Kaiba blinked rapidly at him. For a second... Lord, for a perfect, _split_ second... Yami looked like that angel. _His_ angel. The angel that looked at him with such love and warmth in his brilliant eyes, always with a gentle smile on his rosy lips... Looking at Yami's lovely face now, so close and so charming, Kaiba could not help but feel a pang of pain stab at his heart.

_So much like his angel..._

**Gazing to the heavens for a sign from up above.  
Waiting for an angel to bring you ever lasting love.  
You're searching the skies for a saving grace  
When the answer's by your side.**

**It's staring you in the face.  
Open your eyes and look at me.  
It's staring you in the face.  
You'll be surprised at what you see.**

Swallowing back a sudden wave of overwhelming loneliness, Kaiba turned quickly away from Yami. The CEO tried very hard not to blush, embarrassed at his silly behavior and his odd habit of staring. Taking a deep, shaky breath as Yami released his arm, he looked back at the Rod and was startled to find it very warm in his hands, a very dull glow shimmering across its surface. He could only watch, entranced.

'My god...' he thought, feeling his blood boil with strange, buzzing heat from the Rod, 'This is _my_ power...' The thought was strangely frightening.

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

Meanwhile... Bakura walked quietly, or as quietly as a tomb robber could, alongside the highway. Grumbling to himself, he cursed vividly at cars honking at him to get off the road. But other than that, he was absolutely bored out of his mind. Ryou had needed to do some homework and had kicked him out of the house because he wouldn't stop fiddling with the radio. Of course, the hikari obviously hadn't expected Bakura to simply _leave_ the development all together, but here the tomb robber was, wandering about in a haze of curiosity and boredom through the sleek downtown of Domino City. Being that he didn't know how to operate nor tamper with half the modern objects he came across, Bakura was bored. Bored bored bored.

Abruptly, he shuddered, feeling a strange jolt run up his spine. He looked up, finding the sleek, silver skyscraper of KaibaCorp Headquarters looming up before him. 'How the hell did I--'

A sudden wave of heat consumed him then, tearing painfully through the very core of his being. In an instant, he was tossed, screaming, against the back of his own mind.

Bakura's eyes flashed that eerie dark red as they focused on the top of the building. :::Heh heh... the Pharaoh and his Priest, all alone...::: A feral smirk graced his features.

He was going to have some _fun_.

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

Kaiba wasn't sure how magic worked, but he was sure that the strange cackling in the back of his mind wasn't normal. Very suddenly, he felt encaged, suffocating and unable to breath. Fiery heat enveloped his senses, burning at him mercilessly even as he tried to scream. He struggled reflexively against the unseen force but found that his body would not obey him. 'Oh god...'

Suddenly, through his eyelids, Kaiba saw Yami sitting innocently on the edge of his desk, looking down at him intently with his lovely red eyes. Upon seeing the Pharaoh, that strange laughing amplified to a fevered pitch. The CEO suddenly had a very bad feeling in the pit of his stomach.

'No...' Kaiba whispered, pounding at what held him hostage, struggling with his mental bonds, 'No, leave him alone!'

There was an excruciating flash of pain as a wave of energy flooded through his frozen body, congregating in his Rod. The Item suddenly flared with blinding, fiery light. Then, without warning, it suddenly exploded in Kaiba's hands, jerking itself from his fingers.

A shock wave thundered through the room, shattering glass and metal alike.

Kaiba felt Yami jump in surprise and saw the Puzzle flicker to life in a desperate attempt to protect its king. Then, the CEO blacked out, blinded by the Rod's light.

The last thing he heard was Yami's pained scream ringing through the air.

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

_Beep. Beep. Beep_.

"How is he...?"

A sigh. "Recovering and resting, for now."

"Does he need more blood?"

"No, he's fine now. He does have a rare blood type though, so it's best if we have a backup bag just in case."

Yami groaned, coming to very slowly. As his eyes fluttered open, his blurred vision revealed a strikingly white room with numerous machines beside his bed. A few hazy figures moved around him, but he could barely make them out.

Yami tried to shake his head, groggy, dizzy and totally numb. He could hardly move, let alone feel his limbs. For a second, he felt panicked, fearing some kind of spinal injury like those always shone on TV. He strained his sight, trying desperately to raise his hand. "Aibou? Aibou?!"

Yugi, along with a man in white that Yami presumed to be some type of doctor, was by his side instantly, eyes wide with tearful joy. "Yeah, I'm here, buddy. Its okay..."

"W-What happened?" Yami demanded, struggling against his covers. He thrashed about, trying to bring some feeling back in his limbs. "Where am I?"

Yugi pushed him down gently, shushing him. His eyes were suddenly solemn. "There was an explosion, Yami..." he whispered, slowly, "...at the KaibaCorp Headquarters two days ago. Do you remember?"

Yami strained his memory, a bit alarmed to realize that no, he didn't remember. He remembered talking to Kaiba AT the headquarters, but... The Pharaoh suddenly went very still. He turned wide, frightened eyes toward Yugi. "Seto? Kaiba...?" he croaked, pale, "...Is he--?"

Yugi shook his head, smiling a bit dryly. "No, you big lug, it'll take more than that to keep _him_ down. He hit his head against something and got kinda beaten up, but other than that, he's okay."

"Hey, enough about Money-bags, Yami, how are _you_?" demanded Jou, suddenly coming up beside Yugi.

Yami quickly realized that all his friends were here, along with an extremely worried Sugoroku. "I'm fine," he managed, feeling a bit in shock, "But I still don't get what happened."

Yugi frowned and looked at his friends. They were all silent.

It was Anzu that spoke up. "You should ask Kaiba that question," she said quietly, looking away.

Yami frowned. "Why? What--"

"He was there, Yami."

"I know that, but--"

Yugi's eyes sparkled. "Mokuba says he's barely eaten anything or done any work all this time. He kept asking how _you_ were."

"That's right, Yami," chuckled Sugoroku, patting Yami's head affectionately. "He's still in the waiting room with his brother and his laptop. My gosh, that boy is mighty worried about you."

Awkward silence.

Yami looked away, blushing furiously. "Is he now...?" he whispered shyly.

"He offered to pay the medical bill and everything," Yugi said quietly. "I think he feels responsible." The boy gave a brilliant smile. "You should really talk with him."

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

"Hey..."

Kaiba looked up from where his head rested tiredly on the edge the couch. His vision swam briefly with his movement, but he was able to make out Yami's slender form on the doorway. The boy was dressed in a huge pair of PJ's four sizes too big.

"Jesus, you're out already?" the CEO croaked, sitting up but careful not to disturb Mokuba's sleeping form against his leg.

Yami gave him a small, tired smile. "I heard you were worried about me," he teased lightly.

Kaiba flushed an interesting shade of pink. "Yeah well..." he grunted, wrapping a protective arm around Mokuba. "That doesn't change the fact that you're not suppose to be out of bed."

Yami cocked his head, his eyes twinkling. "You're worried, see?"

Kaiba flushed some more, pointedly looking away.

Yami frowned at the action. This was the welcome he got after all they've just been through? He was hurt.

**Open your eyes, see what you're missing.  
Open your eyes, see what you're missing.**

**Digging through devotion for that diamond in the rough.  
You push aside the tally of what was never good enough.  
Maybe the prize is in a different place.  
Can you be so blind?**

**It's staring you in the face.  
Open your eyes and look at me.**

The Pharaoh sighed, limping over so he could plop on the far edge of the waiting couch. "They said that as long as I get plenty of rest, I can go home today." He gingerly raised his shirt a little, revealing a mass of bandages wrapped around his slim torso. "I got some stitches last night, but the doctors say the wound wasn't too big. I just shouldn't 'run around' for a while." He looked up and eyed Kaiba curiously. "You don't look so great yourself, Kaiba."

The CEO snorted, pointing to the bandage looped around his head. He felt like a total idiot in the blasted thing. "A minor concussion, that's all. It's nothing I can't heal from in a week."

"Ah..." Yami pointed to Kaiba's face. "What about the bruise?"

Kaiba scowled at him, rubbing awkwardly at the black and blue bruise that had grown on his cheekbone since their little incident. "It's nothing."

"Okay."

Awkward silence settled between them, before Kaiba broke it in a very self-conscious attempt at small talk. "So... where's the rest of your idiotic friends?"

Yami shrugged, curling up on his end of the couch. "They're talking with my doctor and signing stuff. I told them I wanted to talk with you."

Kaiba raised an eyebrow. "...Me?"

Yami smiled lightly. "Yes, you." He cocked his head again, eyes gentle. "You haven't been too well, I heard."

"You heard wrong," muttered Kaiba, glaring at him.

Yami frowned. "Hey, it's just a question..." he remarked defensively.

Kaiba rolled his eyes, falling silent.

"I know it wasn't you."

The CEO stiffened, turning again toward Yami with surprised blue eyes. "What? Why not? You have every reason to--"

Yami gave a small, shy smile. "... I doubt you would have hurt me on purpose..."

Kaiba blinked, then smiled brilliantly. "Not then, I wouldn't have."

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

"Why are you here?"

His hand still on the doorknob, Yami blinked in surprise. The secretary behind him promptly fled the scene.

Kaiba stood at the far wall with his hands laced behind his back, his gaze dark and brooding as he looked out at Domino. It hadn't taken long for his office to be rebuilt and to Yami, it looked as good as new.

'I suppose being the richest man in Domino has its perks...' the Pharaoh thought, amused. He quietly closed the door behind him. "... I came to teach you more about the Rod." He tried to keep his gaze and voice even.

Kaiba shifted his weight on to another foot but made no move to turn to Yami. "...And why would you do that?" he asked quietly. His eyes were a stormy midnight blue.

Yami looked at the ground. "Because we never finished our lessons..." he whispered. He winced; even to him, that sounded pathetic.

Kaiba was silent for a long moment. Still facing the city, his expression was bland, his eyes narrowed.

Glancing over to the large window, Yami was curious as to what held the CEO's interest. It was a dark, cloudy day outside, and most of the skyscrapers were shrouded in mist anyways. "Kaiba?"

"How are your wounds?" Kaiba's voice was soft.

Yami squirmed a bit, stepping up to Kaiba beside the window. "Sore, but healing. The stitches are holding, if that's what you mean."

"Well, then--"

RIIIINNNNGGG.

Kaiba looked down and arched an eyebrow. He recognized the rings of every phone he had, and that did not happen to be one of them.

"Sorry," Yami mumbled. He fumbled in his jacket for the cell phone Sugoroku had insisted he carry. After a moment of fiddling around with the damned contraption, he finally got it to open. The boy held it cautiously to his ear. "Uh... Yami here."

Kaiba frowned when he heard Jou's voice on the phone. Yami clearly didn't know how to turn down the volume.

"Oh hi, Jou... Arcade? Now?" Yami looked up at Kaiba, their gazes meeting.

Kaiba pursed his lips and looked away, choosing to ignore Yami's muffled conversation. He felt suddenly and inexplicably sad at the thought of having Yami go.

The closing of Yami's cell phone brought the CEO back into reality. He swallowed heavily but kept his voice even. "Are you leaving then?" he asked quietly.

Silence.

Kaiba jumped when he felt a small, warm hand on his arm. Bewildered, the CEO looked down and found himself lost in a pair of warm, fiery eyes. 'My god, he's so beautiful...'

**It's staring you in the face.  
You'll be surprised at what you see.**

"No, I'm not going." the Pharaoh said with a small shrug. "I told them I didn't want to."

Kaiba was baffled. "Why not?"

Yami gave him a brilliant smile. "I want to stay with you."

**Running from lies in an endless race  
When the truth ain't far behind.**

**Open your eyes, see what you're missing.  
You're blind, the sign says come and love me.**

**ooooooooooooooooooo**

AN: Arg, I hated writing that chapter. Was this new, simplified writing style easier for you guys or the same? Would you prefer the other one with lots of commas? Anyhow, I know you guys get sick of me whining all the time, but this is very low on my list of favorite chapters. The wording is EXTREMELY awkward, and I was running out of ways to make things flow. Interestingly enough, I found that I was stuck for six months on a spot not a page away from the ending of the chapter. Heh heh...

Anyhow, I would be EXTREMELY happy if you'd let me know what you think. (No flames though!) I'm not sure if all my fans are still loyal to me, considering I was gone for so long... -sniffle- PLEASE COME BACK!!

Oh, and please do me a favor! I noticed that I'm not getting nearly the same amount of reviews for Le Coeur De La Mer as I am for this story, which puzzles me because I'm sure the same people are reading both stories. So, if you haven't already, PLEASE REVIEW LCDLM! I would be so very happy! (Of course, review this story first. XD)


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